


Locker

by SnowWhiteKnight



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Background Relationships, Bronn/Lollys - Freeform, Daenarys/Drogo, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, High School Angst, I swear, Jaime/Brienne - Freeform, Male-Female Friendship, NaNoWriMo 2016, Past Joffrey Baratheon/Sansa Stark, Rated M for Mature Situations, Romance, Sandor is a dense potato, Shit Hits The Fan, Slow Burn, Tyrion/Shae - Freeform, Young!Hound, dense potato!Sandor, it is darkest before dawn, miscommunications
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-01
Updated: 2017-01-27
Packaged: 2018-09-13 22:33:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 58,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9145186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnowWhiteKnight/pseuds/SnowWhiteKnight
Summary: New to Kingswood High School, Sansa Stark, bullied and trapped in a locker, is rescued by one Sandor Clegane.





	1. Is Anyone There

**Author's Note:**

> Based on [this](http://dailyau.tumblr.com/post/152684856416/im-stuck-in-my-locker-and-youre-the-only-one-in) prompt by dailyau.tumblr.com

The door slammed closed as the warning bell rang and Eliza and her cronies walked away, cackling to themselves. Sansa fought back the tears that threatened and tried to push open the door, but Eliza had spun the lock. She peered through the slits at the top of the locker, hoping someone, anyone, was there, but her hope faded as the bell rang again a few minutes later, signaling the start of class. She leaned back.  _ The soonest anyone will come through the hallway isn’t until the bell rings at the end of the period. Unless someone needs to go to the restroom, but it’s the first class of the day, you’d assume they went before class. Why is this happening? And on Friday, too. At least I don’t have to pee, I guess... _ She thought she heard the heavy tread of boots walking quickly on the hallway linoleum floor, and she popped up to peer through the slats again.

“H-hello? Can anyone hear me?”

The footsteps stopped. “Who's there?” a raspy voice said. She didn't recognize it, but since she was still expectedly friendless even though the school year started a month ago, it wasn't a surprise. What she wouldn’t give for Arya’s talent at making friends.

“I'm in the locker,” Sansa said, her face burning with embarrassment. “Number four-seventy-two. Would you please let me out?”

The footsteps drew nearer. She stuck the tips of her fingers through the slits to confirm to the person she was indeed in there. “This your locker?” the boy asked, jiggling the handle. “What's the combination?”

“Um, hold on.” She squeezed her hand into her pants pocket. Thin as she was, there still wasn't a lot of room to maneuver around in there. She pulled out the paper with the combination on it, but it was hard to read, so she slipped it through the slits. “Here it is.”

She heard the dial spin as he growled at the lock. “How'd you get in there anyway?”

She briefly considered lying to save herself more embarrassment, but what did it matter anymore? “A girl named Eliza Hill shoved me in here. Took my backpack and my lunch, said I wouldn't need them.”

“Ah, yeah, she's a bitch. Okay, got it. Brace for light,” he said, but hesitated. 

“Something wrong?” she asked softly, worried that he had changed his mind about helping her. 

“No,” he said, brusque in his manner. The door swung open and she was blinded temporarily by the fluorescent lights. She felt a hand on hers, pulling her out and steadying her as she tripped over what she assumed was his backpack. “Free from your cage and your hair looks like a bird’s nest. Does that make you a bird for having the nest or the tree that holds it?”

She laughed and brushed her fingers through her hair, trying to tame the tangled locks. “Rather be a bird than a tree. Could have flown the coop, so to speak. There may have been some rough handling when she decided to put me in there,” Sansa said, blinking rapidly as her eyes adjusted to the light. “Thank you...um…”

“Sandor Clegane,” he said. “Senior. You?”

“Sansa Stark, I’m a junior, just moved here before school started.” Her eyes were just about back to normal and she smiled at him. “You really have no idea how grateful I am.”

“Yeah, well, try not to let it happen again. Never know what your next savior will ask for in return.” He was standing at an angle to her, his face in profile. He was...well, freaking tall. Taller than any of her brothers, definitely taller than her even if she was considered tall herself. Her eyes were about level with the middle of his chest, if she stared straight ahead. He was also handsome, with a square jaw, a slightly hooked nose, and reminding her of a cross between a young Richard Armitage and Roman Reigns, with eyes the color of steel. His long black hair fell to his shoulders, wet from recently showering, and dripping onto the soft grey t-shirt that hugged his fit form snugly. Her eyes traveled down to see his trim waist and black denim jeans, with black combat boots to match. He had the body of a jock, but the attitude and fashion sense of a rocker. 

“So, then, what are  _ you _ asking in return?” she asked, her voice almost a whisper as her heart beat a little faster in her chest. She hadn’t met any boys since Joffrey that she would consider going out with, but if he asked right now, she would definitely tell him yes.

He glanced at her, and for a moment she thought he might actually ask, but he shook his head. “Nothing, little caged bird. You don't owe me anything.”

“Oh, okay, but if you change your mind--”

“I won't.” He walked off, picking up his heavy looking backpack like it was nothing, just as another boy exited a nearby classroom and ran right into him, spinning him around. Sansa gasped in horror as the horrible burn scars on the other side of his face were revealed. He scowled at her reaction and punched the other boy in the chest, knocking him back several steps.

“Watch it, Trant,” he growled and stalked off, his steps suddenly angry. 

**********

_ Fucking Trant, _ Sandor thought angrily. For once, he had a chance to play the cool, mysterious guy, and leave a pretty girl wanting to know more. Maybe she would have fantasized meeting him again and even tried to hunt him down just to spend more time with him. It wouldn't have lasted, of course, his scars being too noticeable and the school being relatively small, but for a day, at least, he could have had that.  _ She was really pretty, too. And colorful, in that pretty yellow and black dress shirt, and embroidered yellow flowers on her jeans. Like a little bird. A kiskidee, only less annoying. _

“Pycelle’s late, so you’re safe. Oy! What's got your panties in a twist?” Jaime asked as Sandor plunked his backpack hard onto the lab shelf. 

“Nothing. Just hate running late.” He almost wished he had been on time and hadn't heard the girl's call for help. He reconsidered when he remembered that the next person to come along would have been Trant, and he  _ definitely _ would have been a creep about helping her. “Found a new kid stuck in a locker, helped them out. It was Eliza.”

“Shit… Does my uncle know?” Principal Kevan Lannister was strict about bullying, but Eliza was in a class of her own.

“Dunno, don't care. If she wants to report it to the front office, that's her business.” He pulled out his book and notebook, ready for whenever Pycelle decided to show up.

“Oh!” Jaime scooted closer, his deep green eyes shining creepily bright as he latched onto the fact that it had been a female. “So you were a shining knight to a maiden in distress? Wench! Our little boy is growing up,” Jaime said, pretending to wipe away a happy tear. 

“Shut up, Jaime,” Sandor and Brienne said in unison. 

Brienne turned around to face her friend and her boyfriend. “She ok?”

“Yeah. She wasn't hurt, but I think Eliza messed with her a bit before shoving her in there.” Her bright auburn hair had looked like she had just rolled out of bed and her cheeks were flushed from either embarrassment from the situation or exertion trying to get out of it in her own. Either way, if anyone had come across them in the hallway, they would have (maybe, if he was lucky) assumed they had been making out. He felt his cheeks burn a little from the thought being allowed to kiss such a creature as Sansa Stark. He realized with a start that Brienne was talking and he had missed most of it. 

“--such a nuisance. No matter how many times she's given detention, she never stops harassing the younger students. I ought to give her a piece of my mind!”

“Uncle Kevan would probably give you a medal. He's at his wits end with that one, and is just trying to make it to graduation.”

Brienne sighed. “I will not provoke her, but I will not stand by if I see her at it.”

“She knows that,” Sandor said. The other two looked at him. “What? I notice crap like that. She has her minions on lookout for teachers and well meaning students like yourself.”

“And you?”

“What about me?”

“You don’t stand up for those bullied kids?” she asked. 

“I don’t see a lot of it, and when I do, someone else usually breaks it up,” he said with a shrug. “I have on occasion, but it's usually better if someone else deals with her.”

“What about this girl you helped? If you see her in trouble again, are you just going to stand by?” Brienne pressed him. Of course he wouldn’t, the little bird didn’t stand a chance against the pitbull Eliza was, but before he could answer, their teacher, Mr. Pycelle, hobbled in. 

“My apologies, class. Let’s all turn to chapter eight, osmosis.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooooo... I'm doing the "First" Contest again. Really need a better name for it. Suggestions? I previously did this contest in December 2015 for "Let's Get A Little Bit Rowdy". I have copied and pasted the rules for the contest from that. 
> 
> The premise is simple. 1st, 2nd and 3rd comments each get points. You don't need to write in "First", "Second", or "Third", you only need to leave a comment. You could write "LSKDJFhgoreuhfs9u" or "You suck at writing" and it would still count. My feelings would be hurt, but your comment would still be a valid entry. I would also question why you're participating if you dislike my writing so much, but eh, that's your business. The only way your comment would not count is if you ask for it not to be considered for the contest, or if it's fourth or more. You technically don't even have to read the story, but I would appreciate it if you did. :)   
> If you don't have an account with AO3, that's ok! Just make sure you make your comments under the same name every time. If you want to be "Anon303", just make sure you use it consistently for your comments. :D I am going by the honor system on this one, and am assuming no one will try to snipe someone else's anon name.
> 
> 1st comment is worth 3 pts, 2nd is 2pts and 3rd is 1pt. Each chapter is an opportunity to win points. The contest ends on the second to last chapter. The final chapter will announce the winner in the End Notes (for real this time). The 3 people with the most points win.
> 
> The prize is a one shot SanSan story, dedicated to the three winners. In addition, third gets to determine if it is Modern or Canon, 2nd place gets to decide what level of rating and 1st place gets to suggest a prompt/situation! And all three get cameos! (Suggestions for your cameos are welcome, and if you'd like to be paired with someone, other than Sandor of course, will totally do that as well.) 
> 
> This fic will be updated everyday, the posting times will be randomly decided by a d12, so that everyone can have a decent chance. Just to make it a little fairer to everyone. :) If there is a change in the update schedule, I will try to make a notice about it as soon as possible. This fic is completely written, so I do not expect to run out of chapters *cough Demon Bride cough*
> 
> Anyway, good luck. :)


	2. Getting Through A Bad Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first few chapters are a bit of slow build. *sigh* But the pace picks up, I promise.

Sansa squirmed where she stood. She had gone to the front office to report the theft of her backpack, and ended up reporting the bullying as well. She hadn’t wanted to, since Eliza was sure to take revenge, but it had slipped out of her mouth as she was telling the student secretary about it.

“For the love of all that be,” the girl said, sighing heavily. She had a slight accent, and Sansa wondered if she was a foreign exchange student, or had immigrated here. “That Eliza, such a cunt. Not a pretty cunt. More like a whore’s cunt that is so used and abused, you can smell it from across the room.” Shae, as her nametag said, had an interesting way with words. “You want help getting it back? I know a guy. He can get it back, only ten dollars.”

“Won’t the teachers make her give it back?”

“Even her father couldn’t get it back for you, and he’s gym teacher. Her brother will try, but he has little luck with her, too. Nice ass on him,” Shae said, giggling. Sansa laughed nervously. “Maybe her sister, but Alayna must like you first before helping.”

She sighed. “Who’s this person that can get it back for me?”

“Bronn Blackwater. He’s friends with my Tyrion.” Sansa wondered if ‘tyrion’ meant boyfriend in Shae’s native language. She was about to ask when Shae said, “Let him feel you up, he’ll do it free.”

“Uh...that’s… I’d rather pay the ten dollars, if that’s ok…” An image of Sandor Clegane feeling her up flitted through her head and she shoved it away.  _ He doesn’t want anything to do with you! He would have asked you out when you gave him a chance earlier! And those scars…  _ She felt bad about that. Her reaction had obviously upset him, but she couldn’t help it! Even if she wanted to talk to him again, which of course she didn’t, why would she, since he had saved her and was the first decent person towards her since she started school last month, and then she went and mucked it all up and oh gods did she need to apologize to him, and of course she wanted to talk to him again, if only to apologize, and how could she be so heartless?! She thumped her head down on the desk. “Oh gods, what am I going to do?”

“Uh, just give him the money, it’ll be alright. I was just joking. He’s not so cocksure that he believe every female to fall for his charms. He has girlfriend anyway.”

Sansa looked up in horror to realize that Shae was still there. “Oh! Uh...right, of course. What else do I need to do? About my backpack and Eliza, I mean. Do I need to fill out a form or…?”

“Nah, I’ll fill it out, but little will be done. Eliza is bane of this office. They don’t turn blind eye, but… eh… punishment not effective, yes?” Shae gave her a sympathetic look. “Meet me at bike rack after school. I’ll bring Bronn and my tyrion, yes?”

“Yes. Ok, I mean. What about the rest of today? I don’t have any books. Or lunch.”

Shae handed her the phone. “Call parents?”

“Can’t, they’re both in meetings all this week. I couldn’t get through to them even if I was dying.” She sighed. “Thanks, Shae. I’ll see you later.”

She headed towards her class, an excuse note in her hand. Shae had given it to her and told her that if any teacher questioned it, to have them call the front office.  _ I guess I can just share textbooks for my first few classes. I’ll see Robb and Jon at lunch, so I can borrow some money from them to just buy lunch...except they’ll want to know what happened, and then make a big deal out of it. Shoot. Oh! Arya usually heads to the courtyard with her friends. She might want to fight Eliza, but she’ll at least be subtle about it. And she owes me for when I covered for her sneaking out to meet Gendry before we moved here.  _ Happy with her plan, she continued on to her first class of the day.

**********

“What’s this?” Bronn asked, picking up a paper from the floor. “You don’t have your locker combination memorized yet?”

Sandor snatched the paper back. “Shit, I didn’t realize I still had this.”

“Uh...ok?”

“I helped a… someone out earlier. Had to open their locker for them, they gave me the combination, and I thought I gave it back, but I guess not.” He folded the paper up carefully and tucked it into his pocket. Sansa Stark needed this back if she wanted to get into her locker again. If she didn’t, she would have just told him the combination in the first place.

“Is this about the girl you rescued earlier?” Jaime asked, plopping down across from Bronn and sticking his nose where it didn’t belong, as per usual. “So I guess you can rescue her yet again.” Sandor would have kicked him if the desks hadn’t been in the way.

The conversation was again stopped by the entrance of the teacher. Miss Ellaria handed back her critiques on their art pieces from the previous class. Sandor's had a large frowny face in it.  _ “This piece has no PASSION, no SOUL. Find yourself, dig deep, or risk losing your ‘easy’ class.”  _ He crumpled up the criticism. Easy for  _ her  _ to say. She was Dornish. They all  _ oozed  _ passion and soul.

He looked out the window as Miss Ellaria talked about the day's assignment. It was on the board, so he wasn't worried about no understanding. Two boys and a younger girl were walking in the grass. The girl and one of the boys were clearly brother and sister, sharing the same dark hair and facial features. The other must have been a cousin or something, because he had similar features, but his hair was the same color as the little bird’s.  _ Maybe a shade or two darker,  _ he thought. He shook his head to rid himself of her in his brain and picked up a pencil. Today's piece would be abstract, a reflection of what they were feeling.  _ This is going to suck. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I was originally thinking that I could maybe try to post at any time during the day, like, 24 hours, and determine the posting time by rolling a d12 for the hour, and flip a coin for AM or PM. I quickly realized that that is complete bollocks! (I may have been watching British tv shows, and my internal monologue has a slight accent right now...oops.) Anyway, to make sure it is fair AND that I don't lose my sanity, I will be posting within a 12 hour gap of 7am-7pm, Central US Standard Time Zone, which is the one I live in. The d12 will still be used. The coin will used to decide other stuff. Just to help you get an idea of the time, for me it is currently 12:02pm.


	3. Meet the Cleganes

Sansa had managed to make it through the day, somehow. Arya had been ready to spill blood when she heard about Eliza, but had agreed to not make a scene. Sansa had gone back to her locker to retrieve her afternoon books after she finished her lunch, only to discover she didn't have her combination. She remembered handing it to Sandor, but not getting it back and slammed her forehead against her locker in anguish. No one took notice of her and kept walking down the hall. Her teachers had mostly taken pity on her, except for Mr. Slynt, who made her stand at the back of the room for the remainder of the class. 

She was feeling rather dejected as she walked to the bike rack after school had let out, and it felt rather appropriate that the sky was dark and overcast with heavy rainclouds. Arya was going to meet her there as well, to talk to this friend of Shae and see if she'd lend the money to Sansa or not. She’d be able to pay her back, once she had her backpack and assuming Eliza hadn’t stolen the cash from her wallet.

The bike rack was in sight, and she could see Arya talking with Shae, another girl, and two boys, one a dwarf that was sitting on the wide stone bannister next to the bikes, the other a very suave looking guy that was as tall as her brothers. He had his arm around the second girl, a plump, but cute raven haired female. Sansa was instantly jealous of the girl's hourglass figure. Not a popular figure anymore, but Sansa thought it was lovely, much better than her own stick thin, barely there curves. She hoped to someday have her mother’s shape. The suave one, Bronn she assumed, waved at someone coming down the steps, but before Sansa saw who it was, she was spun around and slammed against the brick wall of the building. Pain exploded across her shoulders. 

“Well, well, looks like you got out of your cage, rat girl.”

Sansa winced at Eliza’s voice. She had no idea what she had done to earn the girl's ire, but whatever it was, she'd take it back if she could. 

“Why ‘rat girl’, Liz?” one of her cronies asked with a giggle. 

“Isn't it obvious?” Eliza smirked. “She  _ looks _ like a rat, she  _ smells _ like a rat, but can she pee standing up?” 

“Eliza, please, I haven't done anything--”

“Wrong! You reported me.” The larger girl had her hand on Sansa's arm and was gripping it hard enough to bruise. “And now I have detention. Not that it matters, but it pisses me off that you don't know your place,” she hissed. 

“Please…”

“Oh, little miss manners, how proper of you, saying please and thank you. I bet you even say it when you're being fucked.” Eliza laughed as Sansa turned beet red. “Oh my! Are you a  _ virgin? _ Well, isn't that just  _ adorable. _ ” She switched to a high pitch baby talk voice. “Ded mummy and doddy teach yous to keep your wegs closed until you meet your one twu wuv?”

Eliza cackled and her mouth exploded to the side as Arya’s fist connected with her jaw. “Get the hell away from my sister!” Sansa was released and she crumpled, sliding down the building wall until she was sitting on the ground. 

Eliza spit something out of her mouth and looked down at the shorter girl. Sansa saw in horror that it was two teeth. Blood was dripping down her chin and there was pure rage in her light green eyes. “You're  _ dead, _ pipsqueak.”

“Try it,” Arya said, taking a fighting stance. “I've been wanting to punch something all day.”

A small crowd had circled around them, but neither girl payed them any attention. “Arya…”

“Shut up, Sansa. The only ones who get to bully you is me.” Arya tilted her head, popping her neck loudly. “I will bury all others.”

Eliza threw the first punch, which Arya blocked and countered, but before either could make another move, a large hand reached out and grabbed Eliza by the scruff of her shirt, dragging her back and flinging her onto the grass. 

“What the hell is wrong with you!” Sandor Clegane shouted at the downed girl. 

The crowd quickly dispersed, and Sansa thought she heard someone say, “Shit, run! Now there's two of them!”

Eliza got back up and threw a punch at him, but he easily absorbed it as he caught her fist. “Eliza,” he growled. “Give her back her stuff.  _ Now.” _

“Or what? You'll hit me?” she said with a sneer. “You can't hurt me and you know it.”

_ What? Are they… involved?? _

“Dad will back me up. He's sick and tired of your shit antics.”

“My Mother--”

“Has been warned of what would happen,” he finished for her. Another raven haired girl walked up to stand next to Arya and put her hand on Arya’s shoulder. She looked familiar and Sansa thought she might have been in her algebra class. “Now give her stuff back, Eliza.”

Eliza glared at him, then noticed the girl standing with Arya. She scowled and gestured to one of her friends. She walked to Sansa and tossed the bag at her roughly. Sandor growled and the girl's face fell. She scampered back to Eliza. Without another word, the gang of girls walked away, but Sansa only felt dread. Eliza wasn't the sort to let this go. He turned to Sansa and offered her his hand, pulling her up as if she weighed nothing. “Sorry about that. My sister is a complete bitch.”

It clicked in her head. “Your  _ sister?! _ Eliza is your sister?!”

“Half-sister,” the raven haired girl said. She still had her hand on Arya, but Arya hadn't cussed her out or thrown a punch, so Sansa concluded that they must be friends. “Father stepped out on Mother and Eliza was born a week before Sandor. They’re practically twins.”

“Alayna…” he said with a warning. The girl ignored him. 

“Arya and I are going to the archery club now. I'm trying to convince her to join us instead of the silly fencing club. Sandor, be a dear and give her sister a ride home, would you?” Alayna turned and walked off without waiting for his response. 

Arya hurried over to her and whispered, “You want to tag along? In case you don't feel comfortable with this dude?”

“I'll be fine, I promise,” Sansa said. “He's the one that helped me earlier.”

Arya looked at the older boy, then nodded. “If he tries anything, just punch him in the nuts.”

“Oh, gods,” Sansa said, burying her face in her hands. “Just go!”

She heard Arya laugh and run off. Shae and her friends were walking up to her and Sandor. “You ok?” Shae asked. 

“I'm fine,” Sansa said. She mostly was. Shae handed her a slip of paper with what Sansa assumed was her phone number on it. 

“In case you need anything. I will see you on Monday,” she said. Sansa had the feeling that a friendship with Shae was not something anyone could refuse even if they wanted to and nodded. 

“Come on, I've got crap to do,” Sandor growled. The boys laughed and shook their heads, while Shae glared at him. The four of them said their goodbyes and walked away, leaving Sansa alone with her “savior who wasn't a savior”.

**********

Of all the shit Alayna had to pull, today was the day she pulled this. She couldn't have known, of course, but Sandor suspected that she  _ did _ know. His baby sister was scary like that. 

He walked away, expecting the little bird to follow. “Wait…” she said. 

“What is it?”

“Um...if it's too much for you, you don't have to take me home. You're busy and I don't want to be an inconvenience…”

He should have jumped at her excuse, but the masochist in him said, “It's not an inconvenience.”

“But you just said…”

“Tyrion annoys the fuck out of me. I just wanted to get away from him. Shae’s no better. Always sticking her nose in everyone's business. Only reason I put up with their presence is Bronn.” 

“Tyrion?”

“Little imp hanging onto Shae. You didn’t notice him?”

“No, I did, I just… I thought ‘tyrion’ was a word in Shae’s native language. I didn’t realize it was a name.” She gave him a sheepish smile. “I just feel silly now, that’s all.”

He grinned at that. “Come on, let’s get you home.”

“Oh, um...do you still have my locker combination? I have some things I need to get…” She was fiddling with a loop on her backpack. He nodded and started walking back towards the hallway they had met in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  **Clegane Family Tree**


	4. Apologies and Thank Yous

When they got into his car, Sansa was a bundle of nerves. She _still_ hadn’t apologized, and seeing as how he had rescued not only her but Arya as well, she really felt the need to thank him. “Um, so, if you’re not actually busy, then what are you going to do with your evening?”

“Probably watch some crap B-movie on tv. Why?”

Sansa had already checked her backpack to make sure everything was still there, her wallet included. “Well, you saved me twice today. I was thinking that, if you want, I could… maybe… treat you to a movie? Snacks, too.”

He was silent. _Oh gods, this was a bad idea._

“I, um… I also wanted to… _apologize._ For my reaction. This morning, I mean.” She felt her cheeks burning with her shame.

“Don’t worry about it.” He sounded tired. “Most people react like that. It’s nothing new.”

Well, that just made her feel worse. “That doesn’t make it right!” she exclaimed and twisted in her seat so that she was looking at him, though he kept looking straight ahead. “I am sorry for how I reacted, how I upset you. You saved me, and then I insulted you, and I cannot turn back time to take it back, though I wish I could. I would like to make it up to you, and I was thinking... that maybe... I could buy you dinner, and we can just… talk.” She started playing with the hem of her shirt. “Again, only if you want.”

“Thought you wanted to take me to the movies.”

“That’s for saving me,” she said in a small voice. “Dinner is the apology…” He still wasn’t looking at her, but she refused to look away from him. _They’re just scars. Everyone has scars, even me._ Hers were from falling headfirst onto a coffee table corner and not even visible unless she pulled her hair back, but the fact remained. _And some have scars that aren't physical..._ She wondered if he had been teased about them.

He was silent again. Simply staring out the front window as the rain began to fall in quiet percussion. _This was a really bad idea. He doesn’t even like me! Why would he? In the past nine hours, I’ve proven myself to be weak, spineless, inconsiderate, a moron, and he probably dates really badass chicks, who can fight and don’t get picked on by his sister, who probably smoke and drink and can cuss without blushing. I’m a soft and squishy pink marshmallow, and he’s a hardcore can of whoop butt. No, that’s a terrible analogy! Marshmallows are candy and a can of whoop butt is intangible. He’s more of a Warhead sour candy._

“It’s ok if you want to say no,” she said softly, finally casting her eyes down and turning back to sit correctly in the seat. She buckled her seat belt, and prayed that the car ride home would go by quickly. “Um, so I live on--”

“What movie were you thinking?” he interrupted.

“What? Oh, I don’t even know what’s playing.” She pulled her phone out of her backpack and brought up the local movie theater’s webpage. An ad for their app popped up, but she declined to download at the moment. “Um, there’s a remake of an old western, that was a Westerosi adaptation of an Assaian film, Seven Samurai. There’s also--”

“The Magnificent Seven? Actually, I’ve been meaning to see that. Was supposed to go with Bronn, but he took Lollys on a fucking date to it. Not that I’m mad at Lollys, she’s a sweetheart and it feels like shooting a kitten to be mad at her, but if you make a fucking promise… Sorry, getting off topic. Mag Seven is fine. Let’s go see that.”

“Really?” she said more excitedly than she intended as he started the car. “Ok, yes, let’s. I’ve never seen the Westerosi version, but I saw the original Seven Samurai on the classic movie channel and it was just fantastic. Have you seen it?” He shook his head, almost in time to the windshield wipers. The rain was coming down a bit harder now. “Oh, you really should. I have it on dvd if you’re interested.” Sansa continued to chatter on as they drove to the movie theater. Sandor didn’t really converse back, but he would make noises, affirmative and negative, to show that he was listening.

**********

What the hells had he gotten himself into. Sandor sat in the theater, half an hour before the movie was scheduled to start and saving a seat for the girl he had saved twice in one day while she went to get snacks. He should have just taken her home. _To her home. Not mine,_ he thought as images of her in his house sprung up. He had been surprised when she offered to take him to a movie. And then to dinner. _But not as dates, of course. Just as a way to say thank you. And I’m sorry._ She really had seemed apologetic over her revulsion of his scars, and made a determined effort to look straight at him. He had to admire that, if nothing else. _Odd little bird._ He chuckled to himself.

He waved at her when she entered the theater, and frowned when he saw how much stuff she was carrying. Candy, popcorn, two drinks and a large pizza box. _Guess she figured she’d get the movie and dinner done in one shot,_ he thought, becoming a little morose. Not that he could blame her. _Should be glad to be done with a chick like her. Nothing but heartbreak in that future._ Which brought to mind images of kissing and… He mentally swatted those thoughts away.

“Hey, I figured you might be hungry for more than just candy and popcorn,” _(Jeez, does she know what she’s even saying?!)_ “so I got a pizza, too. Hope pepperoni’s ok?”

He pulled the tray up from the side of the seat so she could place it there. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“You know, it got me thinking. I don’t know any good places to eat besides the hamburger place near my house, and then of course my own kitchen, so I have no clue on what to suggest for the dinner I owe you. I was hoping you could pick something?”

He stopped, a slice of pizza halfway to his mouth. “I thought this was the apology dinner?”

“Oh! I mean…” She looked down at the pizza. “I guess it could be, if you really want. But…” She was biting her lip and he really wanted to… he wasn’t sure. Kiss her? Nibble on that lip himself? Something like that. “I was thinking we could do it next weekend?”

_Phrasing!_ he thought in a panic. Now he _really_ was thinking of kissing her and seeing her naked and oh gods he knew it wasn’t what she meant _at all._

“Dinner! I mean, that we could do dinner…” She went beet red as she realized her choice of words could mean something else. “But if you don’t want to…”

“There’s a really good Braavosi restaurant in downtown Kingswood. Been there for, like, fifty years or something.” _Stop talking! What are you doing?!_ his brain screamed at him. _This is good enough! Pizza, it’s all the food groups in one, she does NOT want to go out with you again, SO SHUT UP AND ACCEPT THIS._ “There’s also a Dornish restaurant that just opened up a few months ago. Jaime took Brienne there for their three month anniversary. They both loved the food.” _You moron!_ his brain yelled.

“Oh, I’ve never had Dornish food before. Do you like it?” she asked, picking up a slice of pizza.

“It’s alright. Depends on what you get. I’m partial to the smoked meats they have. I think Brienne really likes their seafood, which is mostly fried. It’s good, but I prefer baked fish to fried fish.” His heart squeezed a little when she smiled at him.

“Let’s go there. I’d really like to try it.” She took a bite and chewed slowly. “Maybe we could go to the Braavosi place some other time? I mean, if you want. If you’re not busy.”

He wanted to be suave and smooth, and say he’d never be too busy to hang out with a pretty girl, but instead he shrugged and said, “I guess I can fit it into my schedule.”

She giggled and called him a punk. He grinned back and decided he could live with that.


	5. Saturday Morning and I’m Feeling...Not Bad

Sansa lay awake in her bed. The sun was shining, and it was the start of a beautiful day. Her plans for this lovely Saturday were to draw in her sketchbook, sew, and then in the evening after dinner, finish her homework. Tomorrow, she would head to the fabric shop. She knew she should get up, but in her warm bed, on the cusp of dreams and waking, she could remember the previous night. After the movie, Sandor had been more talkative and she found him to be hilarious with his dry wit and despite his foul mouth. They had mostly discussed the movie, and Sansa hadn’t wanted the night to end. When he dropped her off at home, there was a moment when she thought they would kiss, but then she remembered that it hadn’t been a date. Her heart had said to kiss him anyway, like on the cheek, but her brain had told her to not be stupid, he wasn’t into her that way, and she had settled on giving him an awkward hug. She had really enjoyed her time with him, and she wanted to be friends with him no matter what.

A knocking at her door drew her from her thoughts. “Sansa, darling? Are you awake? Can I come in?”

“Come in!” she called out. Catelyn Stark opened the door slowly. “I’m just being lazy, mom.”

“I noticed you came in rather late last night. And  _ didn’t _ send your father or I even a text,” Catelyn said, sitting on the edge of the bed. 

“Sorry,” she said sheepishly, sitting up in the bed. “I was out with a...I guess we’re friends? We went to a movie, and then we just sat and talked outside the theater until they closed. It was nice, really fun, and I just completely lost track of the time.”

“Oh, darling, you made a friend?” Catelyn hugged her. “That’s terrific! You’ve been so down about the move, and I know you have a difficult time letting people in. So, tell me about her. What’s her name?”

“Oh...um, actually,  _ his _ name is Sandor,” she said, blushing. “He’s kind of gruff, but he’s really nice and really, really interesting. We’re going to hang out again, I hope.”

“A boy?” Catelyn raised an eyebrow. “Alright… How’d you meet him?”

“He… He helped me out at school. Arya’s friends with his sister, Alayna.” She hoped her mother wouldn’t pry further into how they met and that Arya wouldn’t mention the near fight she had had. 

“Oh, Alayna Clegane! I work with their mother.” Catelyn visibly relaxed. “She’s a dear. Both her and her daughter. I haven’t had a chance to meet her son yet. Arya’s joining the archery club, by the way, because of Alayna.”

“I kind of figured. Anyway, I’m not sure if we’re friends just yet, but I like hanging out with him, and I think he likes hanging out with me.”

“Well, I’m sure he does, you’re a wonderful girl. Why don’t you invite him over sometime? Him and Alayna. Your father has been wanting to barbecue and you  _ know _ how much he usually cooks.” Sansa nodded. Last time, they had  _ two weeks _ of leftovers. Catelyn had forbidden Ned from doing it again for a year. 

“I’ll talk to him about it, but I think it might be a bit soon… I literally only met him yesterday, Mom.”

“Ok, ok.” Catelyn pursed her lips and looked around the room. Sansa waited. She knew her mother wasn’t quite done yet. “So is he cute?”

“Mom!”

“What? I mean, you like boys, don’t you? You dated that awful Joffrey, but that doesn’t necessarily mean--”

“Oh gods….” Sansa covered her face with her hands.

“It’s alright if you like girls, but I’m pretty sure you like boys…”

“MOM!”

“What?” Catelyn was smirking. “So is he cute or not?”

Sansa groaned and looked up at her mother. “Yes? I mean, he… Well, the thing is… He’s got...some scars, on his face. Like, half of his face. I was so shocked when I saw them, I kind of… I hurt his feelings. I apologized, of course.”

Catelyn frowned at her. “Sansa. You’re not trying to be friends with him because you  _ feel sorry _ for him, are you?”

“What? No! He’s a really cool guy. And… And…” Her voice dropped to a soft whisper. “I do like him and find him attractive, but… I don’t think I’m his type. He’s all black leather and tough attitude. I’m all pink lace and cupcakes.”

“Oh, sweetie…”

“It’s ok, Mom. I like him as a friend more than...anything else. I’ll be fine.”

“Sansa… Are you sure? I mean, after what happened with Joffrey…”

“I’ll be  _ fine. _ I swear. Sandor isn’t Joffrey. He wouldn’t hurt me like that. I don’t know him well, but I know that much. He hates bullies, and if I had known him at the time...maybe things would have been different. I think we might not have had to move from King’s Landing.” 

“Sweetie… That’s not your fault. There were many factors involved. Your father and I decided--”

“Mom. Can you really say that if I hadn’t gotten into that trouble with Joffrey, you and Dad would still have accepted the positions at the University?” Her mother drew her mouth into a tight line. “That’s what I thought. And it’s fine. New town, new chances. And I should be getting up and doing stuff. I already have several ideas I want to sketch out before I start sewing.”

Her mother sighed and kissed her forehead. “Alright. Robb’s in charge of breakfast, so you might want to hurry up.” Robb had a tendency to lose focus halfway through cooking, and only the first half of what he made was good, while the rest was mediocre or even burnt.

“Ohhh, right. Going downstairs first then.”

**********

“So I noticed you didn’t get home until after midnight last night,” Alayna said, pouring herself a bowl of Boo Berry cereal. Sandor was sitting at the kitchen table, his own bowl of Frosted Flakes nearly half gone.

“And?”

“Annnnnnnd… Arya texted me to let me know that Sansa didn’t get home until about twelve-oh-five. Their house is about five minutes away, and you got home at about five minutes after Arya told me. So, are wedding bells in the future? Or at least a second date?” she asked, waggling her eyebrows at him.

“It wasn’t a date,” he said. It had felt like it, and he had been tempted to kiss her goodnight before remembering that little fact. “She was thanking me for saving her. Twice. Though, technically, I saved her sister the second time.”

_ “Technically, _ you saved  _ our _ sister the second time. Arya’s no joke. She would have wiped the floor with Eliza. I mean, she’s tough and all, but she’s got brute Clegane strength and that’s it. Arya’s got skill, strategy,  _ and _ strength. Anyway, so you’re not going out with Sansa again?”

Sandor frowned. “It’s not like that.”

“So you are!”

_ “It’s not like that. _ She… She’s treating me to dinner as an apology.”

“What? What did she do?”

“Looked at me with horror on her face when she saw my scars…” he mumbled.

_ “What?!” _ Alayna shrieked. She looked like she was about to raise holy hell, but then stopped. “Wait, but she’s  _ apologizing,  _ with dinner?”

“She apologized with  _ words. _ Then offered to treat me to dinner as an extension. More than anyone else has ever done. And to be fair, I did attempt to hide them from her, so when she saw them, it was like ripping a bandaid off that you didn’t even know was there.” He shoved a spoonful of flakes into his mouth so he wouldn’t have to say anything else. He felt bad about trying to hide it from the little bird, especially since she seemed ok with him now.

“Huh. Interesting.” Her back was to him now as she poured milk into her cereal and then put the milk away. He could see the wheels turning in her head as she sat down at the table. “She could have just said sorry. Or never talked to you again. But she said sorry  _ and _ offered food. I think she likes you.”

“She does not like me.”

“How do you know?”

He pointed at the ruined half of his face. “That’s how. The only girls who have ever expressed an interest are either insane pyros or lost a bet. Or are trying to win a bet, now that I think about it. Besides, even on the off chance that she sees past the scars, I’m fairly certain she’s into guys like Loras Tyrell. There was a poster of his upcoming movie and she stared at it for a good five minutes last night.” It had hurt more than he cared to admit to find her still looking at the movie poster when he had gotten back from the restroom.

“Well, he is beautiful. And so very gay,” she pointed out, bits of chewed up cereal flying across the table.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full. I’m not cleaning that shit up.”

“Blah, blah, blah. I still think she likes you. You should invite her over. Oh, or see if she needs help with tutoring. Arya told me Sansa sucks at math. She only managed to scrape by in their last school because she went to tutoring everyday after school. As far as I know, she hasn’t done that yet, and she’s not doing so well. We’re in the same algebra class. And you do pretty well in maths, don’t you?” She had that stupid grin on her face. Alayna was a freshman like Arya, but like her brother, she was really good at math and was in a higher level. “I’m just saying.”

Sandor snorted. “I don’t even know if she wants to be friends.”

“Dude. You were hanging out with her for more than six hours yesterday.  _ I think she wants to be friends. _ Maybe even wants  _ bow chicka bow bow!” _ She made a loose fist with one hand, then pointed her index finger of her other hand and shoved it in and out of her fist. “Uh! Yeah! Get it, girl!”

“You’re worse than most of the guys I know,” he told her, very unamused.

She shrugged and laughed. “And? Look, did you exchange numbers with her? I’m betting on ‘no, you didn’t’, so I would suggest that the next opportunity, you do so. And then just randomly text her. Like, photos you think she might like. She seems like a cat person.”

“Dog person,” he corrected.  _ A dog person who acts like a little bird. _ It amused him to think of her as small red bird.

“Fine, whatever, send her cute or funny pictures of dogs.”

“Why am I supposed to do this?”

“You want her to like you, right? You want her to fall in love with you and want to have your babies, right?”

“That’s... Ugh… Texting is not something I do normally. And I never send emojis, let alone full pictures.”

“You wouldn’t do it if it led to nookie?”

“That’s not… I’m not about to pretend to be something I’m not just to get in her pants!”

“But you admit you want to get into her pants?”

He threw his now empty bowl at her, just in time for her to duck and their mother to see him do it. “Sandor Albus Clegane!”

“Mom… She started it!”

“I don’t give a rat’s patootie who started it, you do not throw things at your sister! Go clean your room, and then afterwards, I have a list of chores for you to do.”

“But…”

“No ‘buts’, young man. Don’t think I didn’t notice what time you came home last night. Your curfew is midnight, and not a minute after. If you can’t learn it, then you will be punished until you do. Now, go!” Elenor Tarbeck was not someone to question, nor someone to talk back to. She had divorced their father when Gregor had set fire to his younger brother and Jak Clegane had done nothing about it. Sandor feared her more than his father, and only pitied the man when his illegitimate daughter was brought to the family’s attention.

He begrudgingly picked up his flung bowl and put it in the sink before going up the stairs. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK. New rule: I will announce a smaller time window for the next chapter. 
> 
> Let us synchronize: The time is currently 8:07am  
> Tomorrow's chapter will be updated between 3pm and 5pm


	6. Sunday Funday My Butt!

Sansa walked down the street, her thick jacket wrapped tightly around her, her woolen dog ears cap pulled down around her actual ears, and ever mindful of the honks she was getting. She didn’t once look up. A small wave of anger surged through her at the eighth honk and the accompanying jeers that followed it. Robb had  _ promised _ to take her to the fabric shop after lunch today, but by the time she finished, Robb was long gone, off on a date with his new girlfriend.  _ Who goes on a date on a Sunday anyway? _ “Guess I’ll just walk then,” she had mumbled. She let her mom know where she was going, though Catelyn had been on the phone at the time and she was only half-certain her mother had understood her.

A car pulled up alongside her, matching her speed, and her back went rigid as she picked up her pace a little. “Hey, baby. Need a ride? I’ve got a great gearshift you can hold onto.” She glanced to the person talking. Harrold Hardyng, driving a convertible with the top down. In one of the coldest autumns the South had seen in a while. He was going to catch a cold. He was also a known playboy of Kingswood High. He somehow managed to keep three girlfriends at the same time, but from what she understood, they all knew about each other and were ok with it. She’d be impressed if he wasn’t also trolling for some side action.  _ That’s just asking for trouble. If it’s a fourth girl, would it be extra, extra side action? _

“I’m good, thanks.”

“Aawwww, don’t be like that. I’ve noticed you at school, all by your lonesome. You’re Catelyn Stark’s daughter right? My distant relative is your cousin. Robert Arryn? Not that  _ we’re _ related, of course.”

_ Yeah, that doesn’t make this any less creepy, _ she thought. She noticed a familiar figure turn onto the sidewalk ahead of her. “Well, it was really nice meeting you,” she said hurriedly. “I’ve got to get going.” She didn’t wait to hear what he said and took off at a light jog to catch up with the figure. She could hear the car following her, and Harrold’s muffled shouts as she slid her arm around Sandor’s elbow. 

“Wha-- Sansa?”

“Hey, sorry, creep at my four o’clock. Make that three o’clock,” she said as Harrold caught up to her. She kept looking straight ahead as they walked. She felt Harrold’s eyes on her, but luckily he didn’t stop again and sped off.

“Hardyng?”

“Yeah, just my luck. My brother was supposed to drive me today specifically so something like this wouldn’t happen.” She sighed. “So what are you up to?”

“Chores. Second day running. Being punished.” He let out a heavy sigh. “My sister’s fault. Alayna’s, not Eliza.”

“Sorry to hear that. What happened?” He had shoved his hands into his pockets and her arm was trapped under his, but she found she didn’t mind so much.

“She… She was just saying crap. I got pissed and threw a bowl at her head. My mom saw, now I have to do extra chores.”

“Like what?”

“Mostly yardwork stuff. Which I had to do in addition to my regular weekend schedule, but I’m finally at the last item, and I have to go pick up some groceries for this big dinner she’s planning. She gave me this list, and I only know what a third of these items are, if that.” He handed her a long narrow piece of paper.

“Dang… Do you want some help? The grocery is right next to where I’m going,” she said, handing it back to him.

“The hunting store?”

She giggled. “No! Do I look like a hunter to you?”

“Pretty sure you could catch  _ something _ in that outfit,” he said, eyeing her tight pants. She felt her cheeks become warm at the thought of him being her “prey”. She might just try hunting after all.

“Maybe a cold, if I stay outside too long,” she mumbled. “I’m heading to the fabric store. It’s on the  _ other _ side of the grocery.”

“Ah, yeah. I’ve seen it. Making a costume?”

“No. Clothing.”

“Aren’t you a rich girl or something? Why are you making your own clothes?”

She shrugged, a little disappointed with his reaction.  _ Just because my parents have money doesn’t mean I can’t be creative, _ she thought sadly. She had gotten the question often enough that it didn’t bother her as much anymore. “I just like to make stuff and I get to have one of a kind outfits, so it’s a win-win.”  _ Why can’t anyone ever understand that part? _ And it wasn’t like she didn’t buy clothing at the store. She did! It was just usually at the thrift store, so she could alter it into something better, more  _ her, _ and not feel weird about cutting into something super expensive. She was almost grateful to see that they were almost at their destinations.

“You’re pretty unique to begin with,” he said. “You don’t have to do extra.”

“What, so, I can’t do something I like just because I’m already unique?” she asked, feeling her ire growing.

“That’s not what I meant…”

“It  _ sounds _ like that’s what you meant. So, go on. Explain it to me. What did you mean?” She let go of his arm and stopped walking. He turned to face her, looking a little panicked.

“Sansa, I’m just saying that you don’t have to go above and beyond to be special. You already are.”

“I’m not  _ going above and beyond _ by making my own clothing, designing my own style. I’m just being me! What’s wrong with that?”

He took a deep breath, and tried to backpedal without appearing to do so. “Nothing, there’s nothing wrong with that… You’re taking this way too seriously--”

_ “Maybe because I don’t like being told ‘stop trying to be a showoff’! _ How dare you try to make me feel guilty for doing something I love just because my parents are well off. I really thought you were different.” She stormed off, ignoring Sandor calling her name.

Once she was in the shop, she discreetly watched him from the front window. Part of her wanted him to follow her and apologize. The other, and decidedly smaller, part wanted him to go about his business and leave her alone. He watched the fabric store for a minute or two, then pulled out his phone to check the time and walked over to the grocery store.

**********

Sandor stared at the two packages of chicken broth in his hands, but his brain was still outside in the cold, staring at the fabric shop. He knew exactly when his conversation with Sansa had gone to the seventh hell, but he hadn’t been able to stop his damned mouth, nor make it right. He had just been trying to compliment her, he really had, but of course he said it all wrong. He was shit at talking to girls, worse when it came to pretty girls, and downright grave digging when it came to Sansa. 

“Son, is there anything I can help you with?”

Sandor looked up to see a bald store employee with a rather red, bulbous nose next to him. The man took a step back when he saw Sandor’s scars. “Sorry?” he asked the man. His name tag said “EB”. 

“Uh, well, you’ve been staring at those two packages for the past twenty minutes. We’ve been watching you on the security cameras. Is there anything you need help with?”

Sandor blinked and asked, “How do you apologize to a girl for completely screwing up a compliment?”

EB looked at him in surprise. “What did you say to her?”

“She makes her own clothing, but she’s a rich girl and doesn’t need to do stuff like that in the first place. I told her that she didn’t need to do anything extra to be special, she already was. But she thought I meant that in a bad way, like, she  _ shouldn’t _ do it at all.”

“Ah…” EB looked past him in a very wise and worldly manner. “This a young girl, redhead, very pretty? Goes to the fabric store next door?”

“Yeah, how’d you know?”

“I’ve seen her around. Seems like a nice girl. Very passionate about her hobby.”

“Yeah, and I just  _ insulted _ it like a moron. I tried to make her understand I didn’t mean in a bad way, but I ended up making it worse.”

“But you’re sorry, truly sorry? And you sincerely didn’t mean it as an insult?”

“Of course not! I think it’s really cool. I just was trying to tell her how sp-- how cool I think she is. That’s all.” He didn’t know why he was telling the man all of this, but he didn’t know who else he could turn to. “So, any advice on what I should do?”

“Hmmm… Just be very sincere, and tell her you’re sorry. Then tell her what you just told me. Or you could just turn around.”

Sandor turned and saw Sansa a few feet away, holding onto a bag with what he assumed was fabric of some sort and close enough to touch if he extended his arm. He heard EB turn and walk away, but he really only cared about the girl in front of him. “You mean that? Everything you just told him?” Sansa asked.

“Yeah…” He looked down at the ground. “I really didn’t mean it as an insult. It’s cool that you do that, make your own clothing. Makes you even cooler.”

She bit her lip, considering his words. “You’re looking at the wrong item.”

He snapped his head back up. “I am?” He set one of the packages down and pulled the list from his pocket. “But it says--”

She grabbed the list and took a look at it. “Chicken stock. You have chicken broth in your hands. It’s different. Similar, but you’ll probably have to come back if you buy the broth. And you have way too many items to buy for that little basket you’re holding.” 

He looked down at the little blue basket he had picked up. It hadn’t even registered in his head when he had entered the store.

“Go on, go get a cart. I’ll wait here for you,” she said, glancing at him nervously. 

He walked off, quickly returning with the cart. Sansa helped him find each and every item, making up for the twenty minutes he had spent staring at the damn chicken broth, and even helping him carry them home. His mom and Alayna were out and she started pulling the groceries out, and handing them to him so that he could put them away. 

“I’m sorry, too,” she said, handing him the last box of pasta.

“For what?”

She didn’t look at him. Her fingers were playing with the cushion on the back of the kitchen chair. “I… I overreacted. In the back of my head, I knew what you meant, but you… your words, I mean, they reminded me of someone else, and I  _ know _ you’re not like him, but my knee jerk reaction was that you were. So, I’m sorry for that. Can you forgive me?”

“There’s nothing to forgive, little bird,” he said with a sigh of relief. She was staring at him. “What?”

“Little bird?”

_ Shit. _ “Oh… uh… nickname? I called you that before, you didn’t seem to mind...”

She laughed and came over to hug him. He wasn’t quite sure what to do with his arms or hands, but settled for placing them on her back. “I like it. It’s cute.”

He really wanted to tell her that  _ she _ was cute, but he stayed silent and let the hug last for too long. “Should probably get you back home… It’s getting late.”

“I’m ok with walking. It’s just ten minutes, seven if I don’t walk slowly.”

“Look what happened last time,” he pointed out. “Give me your phone.” She handed it over and he opened it easily. “Ok, first, you really need to put a passcode on your phone, and second, if you need a ride anywhere, someone to go with you, or you just need to talk, call me. Text me. Whichever. I don’t care what time it is.”

“What if you’re in the middle of a date?” she asked, casting her eyes down.

“Not exactly seeing anyone, so it’s highly unlikely, but yeah, even if I’m on a date, and you need me, I will answer, ok? Now come on. I’ll walk you home. Sun’s already set and you shouldn’t be walking alone at night.” She gave him a small smile and nodded. He tried not to feel too pleased with himself when she held onto the crook of his arm again as they walked the shortcut through the small park, or when he got home and she sent him a text, asking if he got home ok. He quickly saved her number and added in a nickname.

**LittleBird: Thanks again, for today. I had fun, minus the part where we weren’t talking.**

**SC: No problem. Same here.**

**LittleBird: Can I randomly send you photos I think you might like? You don’t have to send any in return.**

**SC: What kind of photos? I am suspicious. No dick pics.**

**LittleBird: OMG NO**

**SC: HAHAHAHAHAHA**

**LittleBird: you’re such a punk >_<**

**SC: You know it.**

She was silent for a bit, and Sandor wondered if he might have actually offended her, but then a gif popped up of a puppy getting scared and hiding under the covers, its furry little butt sticking out.

**LittleBird: Good night, Sandor :)**

**SC: Good night little bird**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 12pm and 2pm. :D
> 
> If this method doesn't work out, I'm open to suggestions.
> 
> Also, I'm an idiot. I thought I pressed Post and instead I pressed Save As Draft, and I was wondering why it wasn't showing up on this list. -_-' I am sooooo sorry...


	7. If You Can’t Be An Athlete...

Sansa woke up on Monday morning with a feeling she hadn’t had in a long time. She was happy. She was looking forward to going to school. Robb and Jon had left earlier because they had an early morning practice, but Arya said she would walk with her to school.

“You know, I really wish you had told me about Eliza sooner,” Arya said. “I would have taken care of her for you.”

“I know, but… It’s embarrassing. That I can’t handle it myself, I mean. Everyone else in the family is able to take care of themselves. Why am I not able to?”

“Because you’re the one who prefers to create than learn to defend herself. Which is fine!” Arya said with a laugh. “I mean, you make a lot of really cool stuff, and the not-a-dress dress you made me was perfect. So, really, you don’t have to be able to defend yourself, since you have us! Well, not against a girl. Mom would go berserk if any of the guys hit a female, even one like Eliza. So, you have me. But, if you really want to learn, I can teach you some stuff. Later, of course, I can’t be late to class again. Oh, but remember how I told you to just kick or punch a guy in the nuts if you get in trouble?” Sansa nodded. “Same thing works for girls. It’s a very sensitive area for all genders, to be honest. Just put all your strength into it. Hell, a good knock to the temples would work, too.”

“Ok,” Sansa said softly, her joy from earlier fading to a light grey mood. _At least it matches the sky._ They arrived at school early enough to not have to fight the hordes of students to get to class. Arya waved at another pair, walking in from the parking lot. Sansa’s heart skipped a beat as she saw Sandor walking with Alayna. She followed slowly, as Arya ran over to Alayna. The two girls chatted, ignoring their elder siblings.

“Mornin’.”

“Good morning,” she said with a smile. “Did your mom have any complaints about your grocery shopping?”

“For once, nope. Not a single one. She was too shocked that I managed to get everything she asked for correctly. Thanks for that.”

“I was happy to help,” she said. “So…”

“So…”

“Uh, where’d Arya and Alayna go?” They both looked around to see neither hide nor hair of the girls.

“For fuck’s sake, Alayna,” Sandor muttered, covering his eyes in exasperation.

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, uh… nothing, she just… she has a habit of wandering off. It’s fine at school, I guess. I’ll walk you to your locker.”

They started walking. The school was a series of buildings, each department having a separate building, and they were all connected by walkways. Each building had lockers and the students were assigned to them randomly, in order to promote diversity and cooperation. It mostly just promoted people switching lockers without the consent of the school. “So what's your first class?”

“Advanced Trig. On B-days, it’s biology.”

She stopped and stared at him. _“Trig?! As in trigonology?_ Jeez, I can barely get through algebra…” It was really impressive how smart he was if he could do math that advanced.

“It’s _trigonometry,”_ he said with a laugh. “You’re...you’re having trouble with algebra then?” he asked, shifting his backpack to his other shoulder.

“Yeah, it’s like my kryptonite. Math, in general, I mean. Which is funny, because I thought creative people were supposed to be good at math, but I suck at it. I just can’t understand it.” A thought formed in her head. “Hey...you know, if you’re available, maybe you could tutor me? I know my parents would be willing to pay you. They paid for a tutor at my last school. My brother Jon is currently tutoring Arya and me in literature and science.”

“I don’t know, I’ve never tried tutoring anyone. Not sure I’d be any good…”

She felt a little disappointed. She had already been envisioning study dates where they sat at the kitchen table or the dining room table, somewhere with lots of space, and she could make snacks, brain food types, and it would be just the two of them, all cozy like… at least until one of either of their siblings ultimately wandered in. _A dream bubble burst all too soon._ She smiled to herself. “It’s alright. It was just a thought. I’m sure my teacher could recommend someone. I just need to actually ask.”

“Who’s your teacher?” He opened the door to the communications building, where her locker was located, and held it open for her.

“Mr. Slynt,” she said with a defeated sigh. He was kind of gross, always leering at the girls, and she didn’t have a high opinion of him as a teacher in general, but even _he_ should be able to recommend someone, right?

“I’ll tutor you,” he said quickly.

“You will?” She couldn’t help it, but she felt really happy. They reached her locker and she pulled out the combination to open it.

“Yeah. And you really need to memorize your combination, by the way. Slynt is the worst teacher in the math department. He plays favorites with the students, and in all likelihood, he would probably recommend someone that knows less than you about the subject. I guess we can talk about it later today. Set up a schedule or something. Your parents don’t have to pay me. Already got a part time job on the weekends doing yardwork. It’s actually not bad, considering the amount of time it takes, the workout I get, and the fact that people are willing to pay me for it. Even got some regular gigs.” He leaned against the adjacent lockers and watched her. “You sure about this?”

“Well, if you’re not any good at it, we can always stop, right?” she asked, changing out her books and leaving her lunch bag in the locker. She instinctively looked towards the door they came through, and sure enough, she saw Eliza coming into the building. She shut the door and turned to Sandor. “I should go.”

He looked up, then back at her. “Yeah, come on.” Sansa knew he didn’t mean anything by it, but her heart started to beat rapidly again when he slung his arm over her shoulders and walked her in the opposite direction.

**********

Sandor heard the first rumor from Jaime, fucking gossip monger that he was. “What’s this I hear about you dating a freshman?” he asked. Sandor had walked Sansa all the way to her first class of the day, then booked it back to his own class. Selmy was late again, thankfully, probably making out with the social studies teacher Miss Dayne again, and he had had enough time to review his homework and make sure he had finished it completely. He had been a little distracted after having a weekend full of Sansa Stark, after all.

“I’m dating someone? News to me,” he said, not looking up.

“I heard from Tyrion, who heard from Bronn, who heard from Lollys, whose sister's friend works at Another Notion Fabric Shop, that you and your girlfriend had a huge fight in front of the store, but were then seen walking home hand in hand. _And_ I heard from Brienne, who heard from Myranda, Royce, not Snow, that Harry Hardyng saw you walking with a pretty transfer student that same day.” Sandor looked up at him and opened his mouth to speak when Jaime continued. _“AND_ I heard from _several_ students in the hallway that the infamous Hound was seen walking the pretty transfer student to her locker and then to class.”

“Jaime, shut up. Did you also hear from Tyrion that my _darling_ sister Eliza has been terrorizing the transfer student I was seen walking with? She was the one I helped on Friday morning. And for the record, there’s six transfer students, the Stark siblings and their cousin. Sansa’s a junior, not a freshman. That would be her sister, who is friends with _my_ sister, Alayna, not Eliza. I was walking with her for her own protection, if you must know.”

“Walking arm in arm is not a particularly protective way to go,” Jaime pointed out. “Or walking with your arm around her, all cozy like.”

“I was just…” He didn’t know how to explain it. He had done it before he thought about it, and then Sansa hadn’t objected, and ok, _maybe_ he had enjoyed it and opted to let reality slip for a bit so that he could pretend that she maybe wanted to be his girlfriend, but it wasn’t true. He knew it, and he figured anyone looking at them would know it. Apparently, that was not the case. “It's not like that, ok?”

Jaime put his hands up in surrender. “I'm just the messenger.”

“Just the snoop, you mean.”

“So are you going to walk her to every class, be her escort at all times?”

Sandor gripped his pen a little too tightly. Why Jaime fucking Lannister had decided that they were friends was beyond him, but he had been stuck with him since fourth grade. At least, Tyrion wasn't in the same grade, and their elder bitch of a sister, Cersei, was long gone, dropped out ages ago when she got pregnant at sixteen, now the kid was Tyrion’s age or around there. Their bastard of a father had disowned her until he saw that her baby daddy was going places and then reinstated Cersei _and_ paid for the wedding. Thank fuck Mrs. Lannister was nice and had a better influence on her sons than Mr. Lannister. Too bad both Jaime and Tyrion were both annoying in their "good intentions".

“Well? Are you going to be her constant escort? Her bodyguard?”

“No. Just when I can. I don't even know her schedule.”

“You could ask her for it, though I'm sure Shae would get it for you. She was hanging out with us this weekend and all she and Tyrion could talk about was how you _gallantly_ saved the Stark girls from the monster that is Eliza. Oh, sorry, I know she's related to you, but…”

“Yeah, I know. I don't think me being a bodyguard or whatever will really help the situation. Eliza _might_ back off, or she might go full throttle. Can only wait and see. Sansa knows enough to get out of the area if she sees Eliza coming towards her.”

Jaime sighed and nodded, taking his seat next to Sandor. He knew Jaime meant well (usually) and that was the one of the reasons he had remained friends with him. “So if you're not dating her, are you planning on asking her out?”

“Lannister, I will stab you in your dominant hand if you don't change the topic. Let's see how much Brienne likes you once you have to have your hand amputated.”

Jaime scoffed. “She likes me. She wants to have babies with me. Even if she doesn't show it all the time.”

“Or at all. She's going to punch you once I tell her what you said.”

“You wouldn't…”

“Try me.”

Jaime whined a little but said, “You trying out for the baseball team this year? You already skipped out on football. Now you can only go to the games.”

“I needed the time to study and focus on school. Still do. I'd rather get an academic scholarship than an athletic one. Already applied for a few. The math ones are my best bet, I think.”

“Does this mean you're going to be an athletic supporter?”

Jaime went flying just as Mr. Selmy walked in the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 10am and 12pm.
> 
> Also, 2 points to the first person who can tell me where the chapter title joke is from. :)  
> Edit: Zip001 answered the question correctly with "Grease" :)


	8. Dinner Date

“Sweetie, go clean up and get ready to go out. We’ve been invited to my colleague's house for dinner,” Catelyn told Sansa when she got home on Tuesday. Sandor had agreed to tutor her, but couldn’t start until Thursday, due to some family gathering tonight, and then a bio test he really needed to study for on Wednesday.

“Ok, what level of clothing are we talking about here? Casual, semi-casual, formal?” Her mom was a lecturer in the art history department of Brisco University, while her father was a researcher in the science department. They had both accepted jobs there, which was why the Starks had moved to Kingswood in the first place. Any colleague of her mother was probably a professor, and in Sansa’s experience, they tended to be snooty elitists. Her least favorite had been Professor Baelish, who had drooled so much over her mother at the last school function, Sansa had expected a flood to start and close down the event.

“How about that nice mustard yellow dress you made last year? It would be perfect, just add a cashmere sweater, and you’ll be good to go.”

“Yeah, ok, I’ve been wanting to wear that one lately.” The dress had been made for the Fall Ball at King’s Landing High, but Sansa hadn’t gotten to wear it after all the hard work she had done to design and make it. She didn’t regret that fact anymore, and was looking forward to rocking the dress, even if it was just to her mom’s friend’s dinner. She only wished Sandor could see it. _Maybe I can take a picture and send it to him?_ She smiled to herself. It was nice having a crush again, even if nothing would come of it.

Jon and Arya had cleaned up as well, but Robb, Bran and Rickon were nowhere around. Her father was working late and would be unable to join them. Her mother was furiously calling her sons on the phone, only to hang up the landline angrily. “Well, it seems your _brothers_ decided to go see a movie instead of heading to the library like they _told_ me they would be. So, as punishment to them, and a reward to you three, you’ll be given an extra hour towards curfew on Friday, and they will have one hour taken away from them. Ok? Ok. Let’s go!”

Jon drove, as he was worried Catelyn might be too angry and take it out on the other drivers (it had happened before), and Sansa was surprised to find them pulling up to Sandor’s house a few minutes later. “The Cleganes? We’re having dinner with the Cleganes?” she asked.

“Sweet!” Arya yelled and jumped out of the minivan.

“Yes. Elenor is an anthropologist, and she specializes in the foods of ancient Westeros. We were having a wonderful discussion about how food and art go hand in hand, and she invited us to dine with her.” Her mother looked at Sansa, startled, and then grinned slyly. “Oh, that’s right…”

“Mother…” Sansa said, now worried, “What are you thinking?”

“Nothing, dear! Nothing at all.”

_Nothing at all, my bottom!_ Sansa thought as her mother maneuvered everyone around the dining table until Sansa was sitting next to Sandor. She saw her whispering to Ms. Tarbeck, and the two of them giggled. _Giggled._ Sansa was mortified, and it didn’t help that Sandor had no clue what was going on, though she thought it might be for the best.

“So, I guess you ended up helping feed us all,” he said to her, leaning too close and smelling too good. His cheek looked freshly shaven and his cologne or aftershave was a foresty, musky scent. She felt a little faint from the masculinity of it. “Nice dress,” he said, looking her up and down appreciatively.

Oh, she really was going to faint.

**********

Sandor watched Sansa as discreetly as possible. They had somehow managed to sit next to each other, though he wished they had been able to sit across or even catty-corner to each other so he could look at her with more ease. Their mothers were talking like old friends, and Arya, Alayna and Jon were discussing the upcoming open tournament the archery club was hosting. Sansa was staying quiet, eating tiny bites of everything, and very much reminding him of a little bird.

“You ok?” he asked her. _Fuck, that’s a really good color on her. Really brings out the red in her hair, and the blue in her eyes._ He had nearly had a heart attack when he saw her, even though his mother had warned him and Alayna that the Starks were coming over. That dress… She looked like a lady from his mother’s research, though a much more modern one. He felt like a Wildling, wanting to carry her off and… He had stopped his thoughts there, not wanting to think anything too dangerous.

“Yeah, just nervous. Your mom seems really nice. She’s not like the other colleagues my parents have introduced me to.” She gave him a small smile.

“Yeah, she’s great. Though, before you got here, she kept going on and on about how I needed to be nice to the Stark kids, and not curse too fucking much.” Sansa giggled. He noticed their mothers glance over and then a furious amount of whispering happened. _Shit, what is she up to now?_

“I was kind of worried she wouldn’t like me,” Sansa confessed.

“Why’s that?”

“I don’t know… I actually have very few experiences with other people’s parents. In my old town, when I was introduced to my boyfriend’s mom, she hated me.”

“Oh… you… you have a boyfriend? You’ve never mentioned him.” He felt slightly disappointed, even if he had known he never had a chance with her.

“What? Oh. Oh! No! We’re not… not anymore. We broke up before my family moved here. We… um… We just weren’t right for each other, you know?” She was pushing her food around her plate nervously. “I don’t think we were ever even right together as friends. That’s kind of important, don’t you think? To have that friendship in a relationship like that.” She gave him another smile. He wondered if someone could die from cute overload, because he felt like he just might. “So, um, what is this, that we’re eating? This doesn’t really look like any of the meat we bought on Sunday.”

“Yeah, that’s swan. And that on the yellow plate is peacock.”

Sansa stared at the meats, then back at him. “Did you just say…”

“Swan and peacock. All very authentic cuisine from Ancient Westeros. Kings and queens feasted on this daily.”

“Where does one find swan and peacock in this day and age?” Sansa asked, taking another bite. “I kind of wish I had lived in that time, if it meant eating like this. It’s really good.”

“The little bird is a cannibal.”

“Little bird is a bird of prey,” she corrected him with a grin. “Lots of birds eat other birds.”

He laughed, causing the matrons to glance over at them again and _again_ furiously whisper to each other. He decided to ignore them. “Fair enough. Not sure where my mom gets it, but she’s always able to find stuff like this.”

“Find stuff like what?” Jon asked. He was seated across from Sandor and had just started listening.

“The bird meat,” Sansa said. “Sandor says it’s swan and peacock, so I asked where something like that could be found.”

“Oh,” his mother said, deciding to chime in. “I have a guy for this. Charming fellow, raises exotic animals like peacocks, stags, swan, all sorts of animals for consumption. Of course, only animals it is _legal_ to raise for such purposes. No endangered animals or anything like that.”

“What about monkeys? Remember in that movie, Clue, and in Temple of Doom, they had monkey brains as a meal?” asked Arya.

Sansa paled at the remark, but Elenor nodded. “My guy doesn’t, but he’s told me of others who do, though it’s particularly popular only in certain parts of the world, usually places that are more tribal than urbanized, and Westeros isn’t one of them. It’s frowned upon for the most part, as the only reasons given to eat it are to cure impotence and improve sexual stamina--”

“MOM!” Sandor exclaimed. Mrs. Stark, Arya and Alayna all giggled while Sandor, Sansa and Jon looked mortified.

She ignored him and kept going, “--and those reasons have proven to be unfounded. It’s the same with tiger penis, baby crocodile hearts, Dornish flies, rhino horns… All believed to cure male fertility problems, all a bunch of hooey. In addition, the monkeys really are too cute to eat, in my opinion.”

Sandor leaned back and covered his face with his hands. “Oh, for fuck’s sake…”

“Language!” his mother hissed.

“You were just talking about cocks, erectile dysfunction and shit!”

“Sandor…” his mother said in that warning tone he knew to be wary of. He slumped down in his chair. “Now, as I was saying…” Arya, Alayna and Mrs. Stark were enthralled by his mother’s mini lecture, while Jon looked bored and started texting on his phone.

_This sucks._ He felt a hand on his, and looked over to see Sansa giving him a sympathetic look. _Maybe it doesn’t suck too bad._

After dinner and the horrifyingly embarrassing lecture was over, the Cleganes bid good night to the Starks.

“The Stark children seem nice,” his mother said as they cleaned up.

“Jon’s a Snow. His mom refused to say who her baby daddy was, and then died a year after he was born. Mr. and Mrs. Stark took him in and adopted him, since he was all alone, and his other uncles couldn’t take care of him,” Alayna said. “He’s Arya’s favorite sibling, and she talks about him a lot.”

“Well, he seems like a very nice young man. Very handsome, too.”

_“Mo-OOM,”_ Alayna wailed. “He is soooo not my type. Way too pretty and quiet. I need a guy that’s loud, and full of laughter. Oh, and not afraid of my brother.”

“Jon’s not afraid of me,” Sandor said with a frown.

Alayna rolled her eyes. “Because he knows you’re nice to his sister. But a lot of guys at school are afraid of you, which, considering you were the star lineman for three years running, it’s not surprising. They know that _you_ know how to tackle a guy and make sure he stays down.”

“That happened _one_ time--”

“And yet it still haunts you…” Alayna said with an impish grin. Sandor growled at his sister.

“And that Sansa,” his mother interrupted, before it came to blows, “such a darling. She was rather pretty, and I noticed you were getting along quite well with her, Sandor.”

“Yeah, she’s… she’s cool,” he muttered.

“Sandor saved her from Eliza on Friday. They’ve been hanging out nearly every day since,” his sister said, throwing him under the bus. “Practically dating.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Oh! Young love!” his mother exclaimed. “It almost makes me wish I was a teenager again.”

“I said, it’s not like that.”

“Sandor, you should invite her over again. I like her,” she said, ignoring him.

“I SAID IT’S NOT LIKE THAT,” he said with a huff.

“Of course it’s not, dear,” his mother replied, patting his cheek and completely dismissing his outburst and humming some love song from her youth.

Once the table was cleared, the dishes washed and he was back in his room, he fell back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. His mother hadn’t stopped humming stupid love songs and he blamed that for his current thoughts. _Maybe I could try asking her out… Just to a movie or something. Eh, maybe not a movie. I wonder if she likes art or does she abhor it, since her mom teaches it?_ His phone beeped.

**LittleBird: Heeeeeeeyyyyyy…**

**SC: Hey.**

**LittleBird: SOOOOO… Awkward much?**

**SC: Could have been worse. She could have brought out the slides.**

**LittleBird: omg...she had slides?!**

**SC: yep. graphic ones. you dodged a bullet, missy**

**LittleBird: THANK THE GODS. I was already super uncomfortable listening to her talk about boy bits.**

**SC: Cocks. Dicks. Penis. Not boy bits. Makes it sound childish.**

**LittleBird: …**

**SC: C’mon. You can say it. Or text it. whatever**

**LittleBird: boy bits**

**SC: Say it.**

**LittleBird: boy bits?**

**SC: Shout it to the cyber heavens**

**LittleBird: BOY BITS!!!**

He laughed. She really was unique.

**SC: Lol. Hang around me long enough, I’ll have you saying cock and dick with ease in no time. Penis is a bit too clinical imo**

**LittleBird: >:(**

**SC: hahaha**

**LittleBird: so mean. hey, you want to see another movie after dinner on Saturday?**

**SC: oh right, apology dinner. yeah, maybe. the place is near some stuff you might find interesting though.**

**LittleBird: Really?**

He smiled, and spent the next hour texting her teasers about the places he would possibly take her to after dinner. He was looking forward to the tutoring session tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 1pm and 3pm.


	9. Tutoring And Offices

Sansa set up the dining room as the perfect study area. A fan to keep the room just a little chilly so they wouldn't be lulled to sleep by an overly warm room. Cold juice drinks to keep them sharp and focused. Soft, white lightning that wasn't too bright or too dark. Plenty of pens and pencils, erasers, two regular calculators, a graphing calculator, lots of scratch paper--

“Aren't you going a bit overboard?” her father asked. “It's just a study date.”

“No! Not a date!” Sansa said in a panic. “It's tutoring.” Her father raised an eyebrow. She started fidgeting with her braid. “And  _ date _ implies he likes me as more than a friend.”

Both of Ned's eyebrows went up. “Sansa, am I going to have to ask this boy what his intentions are towards you?”

“Dad!!”

Ned laughed as his daughter shoved him out into the hallway. “I’m just trying to look out for you, my little lemon cake.”

“Ahhh! Don’t call me that! I’m not a lemon cake!” she hissed, hitting him uselessly as he continued to laugh. The doorbell rang, and they both froze. Sansa watched in horror as her father got a wicked grin on his face and took off at a sprint. Try as she might, she couldn't keep up and by the time she reached the front door, Sandor was already inside and shaking her father's hand.  _ Damn him and every athletic member of our family, Starks and Tullys alike! _ She was the black sheep, being neither athletic nor particularly interested in sports. Her siblings were strong, smart, highly attractive people. Her, on the other hand...well, at least she was the prettiest one. Not that that had every really helped her. She further stood out as the only one who was creative and liked fashion, though her father was known as a sharp dresser. 

“Sansa, you didn't tell me you had a study  _ date _ with the famous Sandor ‘the Hound’ Clegane!”

If he wasn't her father, and her favorite parent since he was the only other person who had an eye for design, she would have kicked him. Then she realized what he said. “Famous?”

Sandor looked a little sheepish, shifting his backpack on his shoulder and looking generally uncomfortable from the attention. “I'm not… not really.”

Ned clapped him on the back. “Not famous! This young man right here is the very reason your brother Robb had to step up his running game. Sandor kept sacking him whenever he tried for a pass. It's a shame you didn't stay on the team for your final year. You and Robb could have been unstoppable.”

“Dad, you know I love the family and I go to every game to be supportive, but I have no idea what you're talking about. What running game? Sacking? I thought Robb was a quarterback in football?” Sandor chuckled as Ned shook his head. 

“Maybe you can get her to understand how important football is, son,” her father said with a sad plea. “Anyway, I will let you get to your study  _ date.” _ Oooohhhh, she would get him later! “I'll be in my den if you need me.”

She glared as her father walked away with a smug grin on his face. 

**********

“It's not a big deal,” Sandor said after the tutoring. She had her head on the table, her hair loose and cascading down to cover her face and muffle her voice a bit.

“You're a football  _ star. _ And I had no idea. In this house,  _ that's a big deal.” _ She had done rather well, listening attentively to what he taught her, though he had had to repeat himself a few times. In addition, he had found that it was easier than he expected to be patient with her. She really was trying, but she wasn't about to become an A student overnight. He found that he didn't mind. “To half of my family, I mean, that’s a big deal. Arya probably knew, but didn’t care. Jon’s horrible about names, and probably will remember in two weeks. My mom likes to watch the games, and she can understand what’s going on, but unless the players’ names are Robb, Theon or Jon, she doesn’t really remember.” She turned her head so that she was facing him. “So...the Hound?”

“Nickname I got. I’m… Or rather, I  _ was _ a lineman for the Kingswood Wolves, and they liked to say that once I got the scent of my target, I was after him like a hound.”

“Ah. I don’t get it, but it sounds cool.” She turned her head to face the table again.

“So… Robb Stark is your brother. Man, he's a great quarterback. Jaime's good, but he pales in comparison. Ah, don't tell him I said that. He'll pout for days.” She was pouting, too, but it was adorable on her, while Jaime just got more annoying. 

“Yeah, everyone says that. He's a natural leader and people want to follow him.”

“You don't agree?”

“I don't understand sports  _ at all. _ So asking me if I think he's a good quarterback is like asking if you if you want to wear a green dress or a pink one. I  _ guess _ he does a good job, but I kind of assume that because everyone’s always patting him on the back and lifting him on their shoulders or something. See what I mean? Now you, green or pink?”

“I'd say that green is more my color, but I get your point.” He watched her snack on something called  _ pocky. _ It looked like a stick with frosting on it. He knew he should get going. “So, what do you do around here when you're not torturing yourself with homework or sports?” he asked instead. 

She turned to him again, eyes lit up. “You wanna see my office?”

“Your...office?” She nodded. “Uh...sure?”

“Come on.” She grabbed his hand and led him away from the dining room.  _ Man, this house is huge, _ he thought as she lead him down the corridors. It had to be, he supposed. She had told him about her siblings, her brother that was technically a cousin, and adopted brother.  _ Large family needs a large house. _ They arrived at a large oak door and Sansa let go of his hand to get a key out of her pocket. Unlocking the door, she lead him inside. The room wasn't much bigger than his bedroom, but it was full of shelves and a small platform with a three panel mirror on it. A small table was set near the window, and another table, longer and slightly wider, was opposite of it against the wall. She twirled around with her arms extended and a huge smile on her face. “Welcome to my office. How can I help you, sir?”

He snorted. “Not a sir, little bird. I’m on the lower end of the social spectrum.”  _ Unlike you, who could be a queen. I would more likely be your vassal than your friend, and die for your cause, though you may have never even known my name. _

She put one hand on her hip and shook her finger from the other hand at him. “Tut, tut, tut. When you enter The Sanctuary of Stark, the possibilities are endless! At the Sanctuary, it doesn’t matter your budget, we will make you look like royalty!”

“We?” He raised his good eyebrow at her and she grinned.

“Ok, it’s just me, but I work really hard, as if I was three people. Come, come, stand over here.” She pushed him over to the platform.

“What are you making me do?”

“Don’t worry! Just...relax. I’m just going to take some measurements.”

“I’m sorry, you’re going to what now?” But she was already at it, throwing the measuring tape around him, writing in a little notebook, and pushing him around like he was little more than a rag doll. It was kind of impressive.

“How much do you normally spend on an outfit?”

“Am I really supposed to know that?” She gave him a pointed look. “Fine, whatever, I don’t know… I think the pants were thirty...the shirt was twenty, but it was limited edition, sold only at the Kingswood venue of Cannibal Star’s concert for their reunion tour five years ago. It’s priceless, if you think about it.”

“Uh huh,” she said with a smile. “Ok, so fifty dollars, not including socks and underthings.”

“Assuming I’m wearing any.”  _ Oh fuck, why did I just say that… _ Granted, the look on her face and the level of redness was surprising and impressive, but the words had just slipped out of his mouth before he even thought about it. “Sock…” he said, weakly, though they both knew what he had meant. “I meant… my socks?”

“Right… of course.” The amount of denial in the room was awkward. “Well, ok, so fifty dollars is the starting point. My goal is to create an outfit of equal or greater quality for half of that.”

“Half?” It sounded impossible.

“Well, actually, it’s between a fourth and a third, but I charge for half. I don’t have a lot of regular customers though. Mostly it’s just helping out people I know with one of a kind items and they get the friends and family discount.” She shrugged. “But I like it. It’s fun and it’s my anti-drug,” she joked.

“So...you’re not really going to make me anything, right? That was all just for show.”

“Yeah...  _ Though... _ if you’re interested, I could totally deck you out for a school formal.” Her eyes were sparkling a little when she said it and he took a nervous step back. “I can already picture it…”

“I don’t know…”

“Oh, please, please, please? I swear, if you don’t feel like a million bucks when you try it on, you don’t have to wear it.”

“I…”  _ Fuck… _ Her eyes...so damn hopeful. She really believed she could polish the turd known as Sandor Clegane. An idea struck him. “Fine, but you’re going to have to bring your grade in algebra up to a B.”

“Deal!” She shook his hand with so much excitement, he thought she might shake it right out of the socket. “Oh, uh, when is the next formal dance?”

“That would be the homecoming game, next month. And, as luck would have it, that’s going to be this year’s Clash of Kings.”

“Oh…” The color drained from her face a bit. Sandor nodded. Sansa had her work cut out for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 5pm and 7pm.


	10. Spirit Week

Kingswood High versus King's Landing High. Anything between the two schools was called “The Clash of Kings”, but the football game was _huge,_ and the entire town got into it. The school colors, green and black, were everywhere and to wear anything red was likely to get you punched. Wearing red _and_ white, you were just begging to be lynched.

Sansa made a point of wearing green ribbons in her hair, and was tempted to temporarily dye it black.

“Fuck. No. Do _not_ dye your hair,” Sandor told her at lunch. He had finished eating, and was showing her his new workbook. She had been surprised when she found out he had a slight obsession with math problems, to the point that he would buy these workbooks. It was even _harder_ than his regular schoolwork, and she liked to watch him work on them while she attempted to distract him. He found it amusing, but only because she wasn’t able to make him lose focus.

“But it's only temporary! It washes out after a week.”

He touched her hair, making her heart beat in double time as the dark red locks slipped over his fingers. “Your hair is fine the way it is. If anyone gives you grief about being a natural redhead, tell me and I'll straighten them out.”

“Ok,” she said meekly, secretly pleased that he liked her hair just the way it was, even if his objection hadn’t been related to the actual point of dying it. Neither one of them noticed that he had (momentarily) lost his focus and had to start the problem over again.

Sandor had been tutoring her three times a week since their deal was struck. She had managed to bring her grade up to a high C, thanks to all the extra credit assignments Mr. Slynt was forced to give out by the head of the math department, and only needed to pass her next exam with a eighty-five-percent success to bring it up to a B. If she got eight-four or below...she didn’t want to think about it. She had Sandor’s outfit done, minus the final fitting she needed him to do, but he refused to even try it on before hearing her grade. He was such a stickler for the rules.

She liked that about him, too. He came across as this rule-breaking badass, and he _was_ a badass, but he was definitely not a rulebreaker. He was actually a bit of a nurturer. _A badass nurturer who is a strangely attractive mix of sweet and gruff._ He grumbled, but held doors open for her. He flipped people off and cursed worse than Arya (which was saying a lot), but he didn’t ever do it to her. Not that he curbed his cursing, he just never _directed_ it at her. She found it endearing and amusing. They had been out together several times as well, always as friends, though they often felt like dates instead. Her apology dinner to him had been delicious, the restaurant he had picked was just wonderful, and they had walked around the neighborhood after. There had been a lot of art galleries that were open to the public and he had patiently listened to her thoughts on several paintings. She wasn’t much for painting as her form way of expressing herself, but she enjoyed looking at others' art, something she attributed to her mother.

“You’ve got your exam today, right?” He had seemed torn about her grade and had said as much. On the one hand, he wanted her to succeed, on the other, he didn’t like going to the dances, but he didn’t want to back out of their deal. For her part, she wanted to see him in her creation, and dance with him to something slow, so she could feel his arms around her. She had purposely made a matching dress for herself.

“Yeah, and Mr. Slynt likes to make us grade each other’s papers, so I’ll know my grade before I leave. Alayna said to give her mine, so she can make sure no one slacks off for grading it.” Sometimes the meaner boys purposely marked the papers wrong, and Mr. Slynt never bothered to correct them unless a student brought it to the attention of the school.

“You’ll do fine. You’re going to pass.”

“I know. You’re an awesome tutor. But I don’t want to _just pass._ I want to see you in the suit I made,” she said softly. He didn’t say anything, but he gave her a hug before she left to meet Alayna in class.

**********

“How’s she doing?” Sandor asked his sister. Sansa was sitting on a swing, pushing herself back and forth with her feet, her back towards them.

“She got an eighty-three. I double checked everything,” Alayna said. “Just to be sure.”

“It’s still impressive that she managed that.”

“She had powerful motivation,” she pointed out. “Can’t you just go to the damn dance and wear the suit?”

“You know I hate going to the dances. And what sort of message is that if I reward her for not holding up her end of a deal?”

“What sort of message is it if you can’t be kind to her when she’s already feeling bad? I mean, two points, two fucking points! That’s all that stood between her grade average going from a seventy-nine to an eighty. That’s some fucking bullshit, man.”

“Go home already. I’ll take care of this.”

“Yeah, you _better_ take care of her,” Alayna said with a grin. She brought her fist and index finger up, but Sandor turned away from her before she started her gesture for fucking again. He sat down in the swing next to Sansa, the metal chains digging into his hips uncomfortably.

“Hey…”

She didn’t look up. “Hey…”

“So… Alayna told me. Sorry…”

“You did your best. I’m just a dummy,” Sansa said. She sounded a little broken. Sandor reached out to touch her shoulder.

“You’re not. You did really well. You brought your grade average up by eight whole points in a little over a month. That’s really fucking good.” She managed a small smile. “A dummy couldn’t have done that, no matter how good of a tutor they had.”

“Thanks. That actually does help.” She sighed. “I guess I was just so focused on my prize, I forgot about the rest of the progress I made.”

“Yeah, and, while I’m not going give you what you were aiming for, I _am_ going to reward you since you did so well.”

She perked up at that. “You are?”

“Yeah. I mean, shit, it was _eight points._ That’s fucking fantastic.” She was looking more pleased with herself. “I’ll try on the suit.” She gasped. “And I’ll wear it to _a_ formal dance. Next big one is prom, and it’s not until May, but…”

She flung her arms around him, shrieking a bit with excitement. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I swear, you’re going to look so awesome at prom, all the girls will want to dance with you.” He hugged her back. There was only one girl he wanted to dance with. “But what about homecoming?”

He shrugged. “We can go to the game, but how about we skip the dance? It’s going to be full of idiot alumni and townsfolk in addition to the students anyway. We can go somewhere else.”

“Oh! I did hear there was a meteor shower that night,” she said. “We can go up to the hills and watch that instead. I bet some of the others would like to go too, and we can have a little campfire, and roast some marshmallows…”

The campfire made him nervous, but he figured he could stand it if she was there with him, and if someone else dealt with it.

“Yeah, sounds fun.”

Two days later, they were heading to the homecoming game, and afterwards would go up to the hills of Kingswood to watch the meteor shower. Of their friends, it was Jaime and Tyrion who had provided a solution. “Our dad has a cabin up there. We can use it, so long as we don’t break anything or ruin anything priceless,” Tyrion had said. “Now, I want to go to the dance and get my groove on, but Shae and I can join you afterwards. Since it will be so late, Dad said we can just spend the night, and he'll send a cleanup service on Sunday, so no worries about making a mess.”

It turned out that all of their friends were willing to join them, just not until after the dance. Bronn had teased him about taking a pretty girl out to the middle of nowhere instead of to a dance, but Sandor had punched him in the arm. _It’s not like that._

The game had been spectacularly one-sided. Sandor could see what Mr. Stark had meant when he said he and Robb would have made an unstoppable team, but Bronn, Drogo and Jaime were working well with their new quarterback, and King’s Landing’s new quarterback, Joffrey Baratheon, was absolutely terrible. Sandor knew little about the kid, but what he did know wasn’t that great. Joffrey’s dad was mayor, his mom was Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion’s sister, and Daenerys Targaryen _hated_ him. After she moved away a year and a half ago, Dany sometimes called him to chat (meaning she called him to check up on Drogo) and she had mentioned on occasion what an entitled, little snot Joffrey was. Sandor found that to be hilarious, since it was the kettle calling the pot black, but didn’t point out that Dany came across as entitled either. She had a temper like a dragon, vengeful and fiery.

Sansa had asked him and Alayna to join her family, as they had purchased season tickets and held a few extra for friends who wanted to sit with them. Sansa had no clue what was going on, but she did get swept away by the emotion of the crowd, and it was hilarious to see. She was always a half-step behind the crowd reactions. Sandor took pity on her and tried to explain the game, but considering how long she had gone without understanding in a family like hers, he didn’t have much hope. He did, however, hold her hand, so when something exciting happened and he jumped up, she went right along with him, and didn’t have the half-step delay. Her cheeks were bright red and she was grinning so much, even he could tell behind the scarf that hid half her face, so he knew she appreciated his gesture.

“Alright, you kids stay safe and no hanky panky. I don’t want to be a grandmother before I’m forty-five,” Catelyn teased them. The game had ended with a forty-two to seven score, a win for Kingswood, and Sandor and Sansa were getting ready to head to the Lannister cabin.

“MOM!” Sansa was horrified, but everyone else laughed, Sandor included. As if Sansa would ever consent to kissing him, let alone have sex with him in the first place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 2pm and 4pm.
> 
> And to those of you looking forward to their "not-dates", sorry I didn't go more into details. :(


	11. Spaghetti Accidents

They arrived at the cabin a little after ten at night. “Wow, this place is perfect for stargazing,” she exclaimed. The cabin was far from the light pollution of Kingswood, and built on a small hill high above the forest that surrounded it. _Most likely the hill was simply cleared of the trees and then landscaped to be ideal for the cabin,_ she thought. The cabin wasn't really a cabin, per se, but a small one story mansion. The moon was bright, high enough in the sky to illuminate the place.

“Shit, I knew the Lannisters were loaded, but this is… fuck,” Sandor said. “This is really fucking nice.”

“Also really dark. I mean, it’s great for the stargazing, but I’m afraid of tripping on something. The moonlight isn’t quite enough for me. Did you bring a flashlight or-- Sandor!” He had hefted her up like a bag of charcoal and threw her over his shoulder, the box of supplies they had brought casually carried in his other hand. “Put me down, you weirdo!” she said with a laugh. She was glad she had worn warm pants instead of her usual long skirts.

“Can’t let you trip and sprain something. It would be ungentlemanly of me.”

“No gentleman would treat a lady as such. Try again.”

“Hmm...ok, I just didn’t want you taking forever, seeing as how we don’t have a flashlight.”

“Hmph, fine. But if you trip and fall, I'm going to be so mad.” He laughed at her faux haughty tone, though he couldn't see her grinning. They made it into the cabin in one piece, and turned on the lights. Sansa started cooking dinner immediately, since both of their stomachs had been grumbling the entire drive over. The kitchen was fully stocked with cookware and dishes, but the cabin wasn't used often enough to keep the pantry stocked with anything other than non-perishables. Tyrion had warned them and Sansa had come prepared. She had taken the easy way out with dinner, since the others had said they would eat once they got there, and gotten a boatload of spaghetti to make. She was quite proud of her recipe, as it was the first dish she ever mastered and had been improving on it ever since.

“Need any help?”

She smiled to herself and said, “Sure. Chop those herbs?”

He picked up the bundles of fresh herbs she had brought, “How much do you need of each? These are all different ones, right?”

“Yeah, thyme, basil, and some cilantro. Equal amounts of each. Um, about enough to cover your hand in a thin layer.”

They both fell into a comfortable silence as they worked, the only spoken words were small instructions and questions. _It feels a bit domestic,_ she thought happily. Since her siblings were so awesome at physical stuff, and her parents were busy with their work, Sansa had stepped up as the family chef at an early age. Everyone had to contribute to family meals, but she made a point of being _good_ at it, while her siblings just did the bare minimum.

At her previous school, she had been accused of setting back feminism by embracing the stereotype of a future housewife, but her mother had told her that feminism means accepting every woman's choice, not just the one _you_ think is right. “Equality doesn't mean _the same,”_ she had said. “It means everyone has the right to be happy and safe. If it makes you happy, and you’re not hurting anyone, not oppressing anyone, then that's all that matters.” And it _did_ make her happy to take care of everyone, though she drew the line at doing everyone's laundry. The guys’ stuff required hazmat suits and no amount of bribes could ever convince her otherwise. This led to thinking about Sandor and _his_ laundry, then thinking about Sandor doing laundry, which did things to her because she imagined he did it shirtless, so it was one less thing to worry about, and then she ended up burning her fingers when she grazed the boiling water because she hadn't been paying attention.

“Shit! Are you ok?” Sandor asked, getting her burned hand under running water.

“Ow…” she whimpered. “I think I need some ice…”

“Ice is not a good idea right now. Cool water, that's what you need, and that's what we've got. What the hell happened?”

She sniffled. _I was thinking about how sexy you are, even doing something as mundane as laundry. I'm such an idiot!_ “I… I don't know. Misjudged the distance between the water and my fingers, I guess.”

“Spacey little bird,” he chided, but he looked so worried. “How does your hand feel?”

“Better…”

“Ok, let's take a look… Not too bad. You won't have to go to the hospital, so that's good.” He was looking so intently at her fingers, caressing them so softly, she almost expected him to kiss her injury. "You should be fine to continue, just be careful."

She blamed the carelessness of her next remark on the combination of the pain of her burn and the lightheadedness she felt from him being so close. “You know a lot about burns then?”

His fingers stiffened into a painful grip on hers. “A bit,” was all he said.

“Sandor… I didn't mean…” She thought carefully about what she should say. “I find it admirable that you learned how to handle them. I wouldn't know the first thing about what to do. Probably would have made it worse, if it wasn’t for you. So… thank you.”

His grip lessened. “I… You’re welcome, little bird.” His shoulders were still tense.

She gave him a hug. “Sandor.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m here for you. You don’t have to tell me anything, but...” She felt some of the tension leave his body, and his arms came around her to hug her back. He didn’t say anything else, but she felt the grip he had on her shirt. “I’m here… if you need me.”

He nodded, let go of her and then walked out to the porch. Sansa finished cooking, and brought out two plates when she joined Sandor. He was sitting at the large picnic table, staring out into the darkness until she flipped on the low porch lights, giving a romantic glow to the area. He ate wordlessly, then moved to sit on a reclining chair. When she reached out to take away his empty plate, he spoke. “It was my brother.”

“I’m sorry?”

He cleared his throat, motioned for her to join him and waited for her to get comfortable next to him on the chair, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Gesturing to his scars, he said, “My brother, Gregor, he did this to me. We were in the backyard, Gregor, Alayna and me. Alayna was only four, and she was running around with this water pistol. I had one too, and we were playing cops and robbers. Dad had just finished grilling, taken the food inside. Gregor… he was just sitting there, calm, listening to his cd player and not paying attention to us. Alayna… she was aiming for me, but she hit Gregor’s cd player instead. It was a really cheap thing, I think it cost ten dollars, at the most, so as soon as the water hit it, it fizzled out. It wasn’t that big a deal. He had another one. A nicer one. Something our parents got him for his birthday the month before. Didn’t matter. He went after her. She was screaming, terrified of course, as he dragged her over to the grill, trying to push her little hand over the still red coals…”

Sandor shuddered and Sansa hugged him tightly.

“She was _four._ Four _fucking_ years old. She was just a _baby._ I was only seven, and Gregor… he was sixteen. And he was _huge._ Already taller than most adults. Mom and Dad heard her screams, but they were too far away. I… I didn’t know what else to do. Mom had been gardening earlier in the day, hadn’t put the tools away. I grabbed the hoe, I brought it up over my head, and then down onto Gregor’s arm. It barely hurt him, wasn't strong enough to do any real damage, but he let Alayna go, turned his attention to me. He grabbed my by the head, tore the grate off the grill, and shoved me face first into the embers…” He held up his hand. She hadn’t noticed at first, not until she was staring at him during one of their tutoring sessions, but there were some burn scars there, too, on his palm. “I tried to push away, I think... I don’t remember much of what happened after that. I was told about it later. Mom attacked him next, and he went after her, nearly killed her, had his big meaty hands around her throat. Dad was supposed to call the cops, but… he didn’t. Our neighbor, Oberyn Martell, _he_ called the cops, then he jumped in and fought Gregor. Managed to get him to let go of Mom, though he lost an eye in the process. Dad...he was completely useless, and he even tried to punch Mr. Martell. Dad might have been drunk, but I don’t really remember. When the cops and the ambulances came, he tried to say it was just a misunderstanding… I still don’t understand why. Gregor was sent to jail, tried as an adult at Mom’s insistence. He was supposed to be released last year, but he got into some trouble a few months before that happened. He died after he crossed the wrong person. Mom divorced Dad not long after the incident, fought for custody of us, and won. Mr. Martell helped us move away. He checks in on us every so often, and his on-again-off-again girlfriend is the art teacher at school, who I’m fairly certain reports back to him on us.”

“Ms. Ellaria?”

“Yeah, keeps telling me I have to tap into my emotions if I ever want to get good grades. I’m passing, and that’s all I care about.” Sandor was silent again, but Sansa didn't dare move. There was something else hanging in that silence, a tension, but whatever it was stayed there, and if Sandor was going to share it, it wasn’t going to be tonight. She felt him relax a bit more, and the moment was gone.

Sandor was so warm, but the air was cold in the hills. “Sandor, I’m going to go put the dishes away, and cover the food. Turn some of the lights out so we can see the night sky better. I’ll be right back, and I’ll bring a blanket out, too, ok?”

“Sure. Sansa?”

“Yeah?”

“You cook really well.”

“Oh...thanks. I’m glad you liked it.” It warmed her heart to know he had at least enjoyed her cooking while he had been stressing about telling her about his scars, though her brain was racing a mile a minute as she set about her tasks. It was so hard to comprehend a big brother turning on a younger sibling like that. _Sandor didn’t turn on Alayna though. He didn’t hesitate to save her. I’m not sure I could do something like that, but I don’t think Robb would ever do anything like Gregor did either._ When she got back outside, she rejoined Sandor on the reclining chair, a blanket in hand.

“I never told anyone else that story. Not Bronn, not Brienne. Definitely not Jaime. Fucking blabbermouth.”

She giggled. “I won’t tell anyone, Sandor. They can stick pins under my fingernails, pour spiders over me, or anything else. I won’t tell.”

“I doubt anyone would go that far, but thanks.” He held her tightly. “Sansa…”

“Yeah?”

“I think you’re my best friend.”

She smiled. “Really? You’re definitely my best friend. Best I ever had.”

“Ah, don’t tell Jaime though. For some reason, he’s got it into his head we’re 'BFFs'. No idea why.”

“Pins and spiders, Sandor. Pins and spiders.”

**********

Sandor dozed lightly. His stomach was full of good food, his best friend was humming some song he couldn’t place, a hymn maybe, and soon one of the most spectacular sights you could see in the night sky with the naked eye was going to start. He heard the front door slam open, and Jaime’s voice carried through the cabin.

“HOOOON~NEEEEEEEEEEY, I’m home!”

“Jaime, shut up,” he heard Brienne and Bronn say in unison. Sansa giggled.

He didn’t protest when she got up to greet them. He had never had a best friend before. Bronn and Brienne were close friends, but he had never felt comfortable with telling them about what Gregor had done. With Sansa, he knew she wouldn’t pity him. Sympathize, yes. Empathize, most assuredly. But pity? Never.

The sliding door to the porch opened, and Jaime nearly tipped over his plate of spaghetti onto the ground. “Hey! Sandor!” he said loudly. Sandor briefly wondered if Jaime had been drinking, and verified he had when he got too close, breathing alcoholic fumes into Sandor face. “Did you make a movie on Sansie?”

“What?”

“Move make Sansa did you on?”

“Jaime, words, in order.”

Jaime scrunched up his face. “Did. You. Make? A move. On. Sansa.” He beamed, extremely proud of himself. “That. Answer now, please.”

“No, we…” Sansa, Brienne, Bronn and Lollys came out onto the porch just then. “We made dinner, ate dinner, and then we’ve been talking and watching the sky. Where’s Tyrion and Shae?”

“Shae was feeling ill and Tyrion took her home. I think someone spiked the punch with something more than alcohol,” Brienne said.

“She was soooooo faking.”

Brienne smacked Jaime. “She threw up!”

“Maybe she’s preggers? Tyrion poinks her enough.” Jaime went flying again, but somehow managed to save most of his spaghetti.

“Oh, I think I see the meteors,” Lollys said softly. The rest of them looked up. A few had started, and Sansa joined him again on the lounge chair, tucking herself into his side and pulling the blanket around them. The others found comfortable spots as the sky seemed to open up and rain down light, though Brienne refused to snuggle with Jaime until after he finished his food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 10am and 12pm.


	12. Teenage Funk

Sansa had gotten into a comfortable pattern. She got to school early enough to avoid Eliza near her locker, and then ran to it during the periods Eliza wasn’t there to exchange her books. It had taken some trial and errors to find the pattern, and she ended up stowing some of her things in Sandor’s locker since it was closer to two of her classes, but she felt it was worth it to keep from being cornered again. Alayna and Arya walked with her whenever Sandor wasn’t around. Brienne walked with her too, once they discovered they had a class right next to each other. Sansa found Jaime incredibly funny, especially when he was needling Brienne about something.

It was rare for her to be alone, but alone she was when Harrold Hardyng found her in the school library.

“Sansa! You look positively enchanting today,” he said, grinning wildly and oozing with charm. It reminded her strongly of Joffrey when she first met him.

“Thank you for the compliment.”

“I've noticed you around school a lot…”

“Well, I _am_ a student here. Where else would I be?”

He coughed nervously, but she saw the sparkle in his eye. _He's pretending. Oh, he IS good. But not good enough._ She could see why he managed to have so many girlfriends if he was like this with all of them. “My apologies, your grace and elegance make me befuddled and thus I behave like a fool.”

She wanted to roll her eyes. _Well, I suppose he decided to change tactics since the last time he tried to pick me up, but who the hell talks like that?_ She could almost hear Sandor's snort in the back of her mind. _“Pretentious little shits trying to get into pretty girls skirts, that's who.”_ She smiled at the thought of Sandor calling her pretty and couldn't wait to tell him about this. He would find it amusing. “I am sorry to _befuddle_ you so greatly. Is there something I can help you with? I really need to study.”

“I'll be brief then. Sansa, I must confess, you have been on my mind. I feel overwhelmed by my feelings for you, that I suffer from lack of your presence. Would you do me the honor of joining me for dinner at the finest establishment Kingswood has to offer?”

Her eyebrows went up as he bowed low. _Is he trying to be a gentleman? Because he looks like an idiot._ She cleared her throat. “I appreciate the offer, but I must decline. I am extremely busy with my schoolwork.” _Thank goodness for that!_ “And I should really concentrate on that.”

“Ah, yes, I heard that you have trouble with certain subjects. I can offer my assistance as a tutor--”

“I have plenty of tutors.” Two was plenty, right? “But thank you.”

“Prom!” he exclaimed as she started to turn away.

“I'm sorry?”

“Let me escort you to prom,” he said. “We'll be shoe-in for King and Queen.”

“Um...that's… isn't it a bit early to be asking about prom?”

“Not if you want the most beautiful girl in school on your arm,” he said, flashing those pearly whites again. “And you are definitely that.”

“Right… I'm going to go now…” she said, and quickly left the stacks.

He called after her, but she heard the librarian get after him. Dodging several students, she checked out the books she needed and got out of there.

“You are never going to guess what just happened,” Sansa said, slipping into her usual seat next to Arya. Alayna wasn't there yet. They had started to meet during their study hall and Sansa's free period that she treated like study hall. The quad was blissfully quiet as they sat at one of the many picnic tables provided for the students.

“Probably not. Spit it out then.”

“Harrold Hardyng just asked me out. To _prom._ Can you believe that?” She giggled from the absurdity of it.

Arya stared at her. “Did you… did you tell him yes?”

“What? Of course _not._ He's an idiot. I have higher standards.” _Taller ones. With jet black hair, Valyrian steel eyes and a raspy voice that sends shivers down my spine._ “Plus, it's too early to be thinking about that.”

“Ah. Good.” Arya turned back to her textbooks.

“I can't wait to tell Sandor.”

Her head shot up to look at Sansa. “You're going to tell him?”

Sansa shrugged. “Well, yeah, he'll find it amusing. Don't you think?”

Arya snorted. “Maybe. Or he'll punch Hardyng out of jealousy.”

“Why would he do that?” Sansa asked as Alayna joined them.

Alayna rolled her eyes. “Duh-doy! He gets jealous when other guys just _look_ at you!”

“Wh-what? But he has no reason to be jealous! I would never go with-- I mean, we're just friends…” she squeaked.

“Ha ha ha! Yeah, right. Sandor might not see it, but I do!” Alayna laughed. “You want to jump his bones. Big time.” Arya sniggered.

 _“Alayna!”_ she hissed, but that just made the girls laugh harder.

“Don't worry. I'm all for it. You guys are really good together, ya know? You make him more sociable, and he makes you more bold. It's a good balance. Man, if you guys get married, we'll totally all be sisters! Do you know how awesome that would be?”

“Alayna! We're not… I don't know if he even likes me like that… I mean, he's my best friend. I don't want to ruin that, you know?”

“Of course! Totally get it. But he likes you. Trust me. I know my brother. He just needs some encouragement. He's shy when it comes to girls. Even more around you, in that context, so he plays the friend card. You'll need to go slow, if you decide to go down that path. Which, I hope you do.”

“I… I'm not sure. I'll think about it.”

**********

“Alright,  five more laps, then hit the showers! Nobody wants to smell your teenage funk,” the coach yelled out. Sandor grimaced, but this was nothing to him. He was used to waking up at four in the morning and running five miles, then doing his stretching and core exercises, all for football and then baseball. Nowadays he woke up at six and only did three miles, but the rest stayed the same. Especially since Sansa insisted on feeding him, and there was no way he was turning down her cooking. _Five laps, that all you got, old man?! That just means I can have Sansa's cookies lat-- I mean… Fuck._

Sadly, he had become adept at dealing with the constant erections he got while thinking about Sansa. Not so much the guilt, but he at least limited himself to jacking off once a day to thoughts of her. _At least no one is looking at me right now, but fuck, this is uncomfortable. She is my friend. My BEST friend. You do not ogle your best friend, no matter how fucking beautiful and fantastic-- This isn't helping. Jaime in a speedo. Jaime in a speedo. Not enough. Bronn? In a mini skirt. Still not-- DAD in a mini skirt. Ok… that might have been a bit much._ He growled at his father in the distance, counting down the laps the class was on. Sandor felt bad for Sam, since his father picked on him the most, but Sansa's brother Jon was running alongside the fat bastard, being supportive and shit. _Ah, what the hell. Sam’s likely to pass out again and Jon could use the extra muscle to carry him to the nurse’s office._

He had become more familiar with Jon, and Sansa's family as a whole, since he was spending so much time there in general, that he felt bad not hanging out with him more in their phys ed class. They didn't have much in common, but he still felt bad. Jaime, the idiot, who shared nearly every class with him and was a few steps behind him followed along.

“Hey, Jon. Sam. Shitty day for a run, isn't it?” Sandor asked, slowing his pace. It was the last class of the day, what did he care if he went over? Sansa usually waited for him anyway, watching the remains of the class suffer while they finished their laps.

“Oh, uh... Sandor...right?” Sam asked. He seemed a bit afraid, but Sandor had noticed Sam’s shadow sometimes made him nervous so he didn't take it personally. “Wh-what.. are you doing? Here? With us. I mean.”

“Just being supportive. Don't even say ‘being an athletic supporter’, Jaime, or I swear Brienne will have to find a new boyfriend.” Jaime's mouth snapped shut. “I've got this run in the bag, even if my dad wasn't the coach. And you looked like you could use some company. That's all.” He was barely out of breath, same with Jon and Jaime.  

“Sandor’s not so scary once you get to know him,” Jon said with a chuckle. “Sansa's got him wrapped around her little finger and she's a self-proclaimed ‘pink cupcake’.”

“But...Sansa's _pretty…_ and she's a _girl._ She's a...sweetheart. She...could wrap... _anyone..._ around… her little finger,” Sam complained, his words coming out choppy as he huffed and puffed.

“Not everyone, Sam,” Jon said. There was an extra note of sadness in his usual melancholy voice.

“What… do you… mean?” Sam huffed, giving voice to Sandor's thoughts.

“Ah, I just mean that, I'm sure there's some people out there who… are immune to her natural charm. That's all.” Jon forced a smile out and Sam just nodded in understanding, but Sandor made a mental note to ask Sansa if Jon meant something else by that odd statement.

They finished the run about twenty minutes after the last bell. The other three headed to the showers, but Sandor had to stay behind at the request of the coach.

“What do you want, Dad?”

“You came in over your usual time. Following that fat fuck around like that Snow does. They making you soft, boy?”

Sandor refrained from getting lippy. He could see Sansa in the background talking to Jon. Last thing he wanted was to start a fight with Jak Clegane in front of her. “I was just being friendly. Jon's a good guy, Sam is too. He finished all his laps today without collapsing, didn't he?”

“S’pose he did,” snorted Jak. “This have anything to do with the redhead I’ve seen following you around? Pretty little bitch with the cock sucking lips?”

Jak suddenly couldn't breathe, Sandor's hand around his throat preventing any air from passing in or out of his lungs. “Call me soft, call me a cunt, hells, call me a pillow biting fancy pants cocksucker, I don't give a shit. But disrespect my friend again, and I will prove how much of the blood that ran through Gregor’s veins also runs through mine. I will show you _exactly_ why I was feared as the Hound.” He shoved his father away from him, angrily watching as the man sucked in breath after breath.

“Always… knew… it was… in you… somewhere… Clegane blood. Clegane nature…” his father coughed out. “You're just… like Gregor.”

“He's _nothing_ like Gregor,” Sansa said, looking very much like a pink cupcake she often proclaimed herself to be in her soft pink cashmere sweater and matching hat. Her chocolate brown skirt wasn't helping. “No matter what he does or doesn't do, he will _never_ be like Gregor. You would know that if you took the time to get to know him.” She grabbed Sandor's hand and pulled him away. He let himself be pulled along until they were out of sight of his father.

“Sansa, stop, he’s not coming after us.”

“I almost wish he would! Oh! He… He made me so mad! I think I could just… I could just…”

It was amusing to watch her puff up like an angry little sparrow. “Just what?”

“I could just punch him!” she said with force. “I have never wanted to punch someone so badly!”

He chuckled and drew her into a hug. He found he couldn't stay mad when Sansa was being adorably overprotective. She was stiff at first, then relaxed against him as he rubbed circles on her back. “Little bird’s got talons. Good to know. But don’t worry about my dad, he’s all bluster. I know that, and I shouldn’t have let his words goad me.”

Her arms came up around his waist to hug him. “What did he say?” she asked, her nose pressed up against his chest.

“Stupid shit,” he said. “Completely stupid shit. Anyway, I have to go shower. I’ll be out in a few minutes. If you see my dad, just ignore him. If he starts to bother you, tell him I’ll be out soon and he can deal with me. Got it?”

She nodded.

“Sansa.”

“Yeah?”

“You have to let go now.”

“Oh. Right.”

By the time he got out, he was feeling relaxed. The hot water of the shower had done him good, plus Sansa had seen him freak out at his father, but instead of being scared, she had been on his side instead. He was more prone to grumpiness than violence, but sometimes he wondered how little difference there was between himself and his brother when it did come to that.

They walked home, stopping at the park when Sansa decided she wanted to swing. “I just need some air, some height!” she said with a laugh. He sat on the swing next to her and watched as she practically went even with the top of the swings, kicking her legs to get the maximum momentum.

Once she settled down and had two feet more or less firmly planted on the ground, he asked, “Were you trying to fly away or something?”

“Maybe. Definitely trying to clear my head. My heart is beating so fast, my blood is pumping and everything makes sense, you know?”

He did. It was why he liked to run, besides it being a great way to burn calories.

“I just… I needed to make a decision and I've been thinking and thinking and it wasn't until I swung and it was like I could touch the sky…” She stood up and turned to him. “You are my best friend, Sandor. And I never want to lose that. I never want to lose _you.”_

He furrowed his brow in concern. “I never want to lose you either.”

“So, this is a bit of a leap I'm making, but… this is what I've decided, right here, right now. If you don't like it, then tell me.” She was biting her lip, making him more concerned.

“Sansa, what are you--”

He couldn't breathe as she cupped his face in her delicate hands and brought her lips to meet his. _Soft, and cherries. Tongue. Oh fuck, that's her tongue. In my mouth. Shit. I mean, not shit but...shit. What the hells is going on?!?!_

“You make me feel safe, Sandor. I trust you more than anyone else, including my family. I want…” She bit her lip again. “I want to be able to… to do this… to do many things with you, but only… only if you're ok with it. I don't… I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable.”

_What? She couldn't want… Oh. I get it. She wants a practice partner. Of course she would turn to me. I'm her best friend. And I happen to be male. I can do that. I can… shit. Can I? Can I really be her practice dummy when I already have feelings for her? When I know it's all for someone else to reap the benefit? _

“Sandor?” She was looking at him with concern. Her hands, still on his cheeks, were trembling slightly. He covered them with his own.

“Of course, I'm ok with that. Anything you want, I'm game.” He felt his heart clench as she smiled her megawatt smile and kissed him again. _I may have just condemned myself to the sweetest hell._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be between 10am and 12pm. (I rolled the same number two days in a row. *shrugs*)
> 
> Bonus question: What subjects is Jon tutoring Sansa and Arya in? First person who answers correctly gets 2 extra points.
> 
> Update: Sassyeggs got the correct answer first! Science and literature! :D


	13. Mid-Terms and Winter Break

“You made out with him?? A month ago!?” Alayna asked in excitement. Sansa nodded and shushed her friend. They were in the library, studying for midterms, and were _supposed_ to be drilling each other on algebraic equations since the first exam was tomorrow, but Alayna wanted info on Sansa’s upcoming “sort of date” with Sandor first. It was just supposed to be a way to blow off some steam after school let out for the winter break and Sansa had just made the mistake of telling Alayna that she wanted to kiss him again, which led to explaining she had first kissed him a month ago and how they had also made out in his bedroom after doing their homework and that she had been kissing him every day since then. “Oh my gods… That is just fantastic. I know this should be obvious, but are you guys officially dating then?”

“I… I think so? I don’t know… We never actually said… Should I ask him?” Joffrey had just flat out told her when they were in a relationship, but that had felt so different from what she had with Sandor. With Sandor, everything was just _better._ His many hugs, his recent kisses, just hanging around him in general, really. It felt right. After they had made out, Sandor had let her lay her head on his shoulder, his arm around her, and had talked awhile about a story he had read and everything that was wrong about it. She didn’t understand half of what he was talking about, having not read the story herself, but he said that was fine. She suspected he was just nervous after all that kissing, and she had wanted to kiss him again, but she didn’t want to make his head pop either.

“Hmmm…” Alayna said. “Probably a good idea. Oh! Or you could give him a blow job.”

“Alayna!” she hissed.

“What? He’s the kind of guy that if he wasn’t interested in a girl, or had no intention of going further with her, he would not let her do that in the first place. Hence, he if lets you do that, then you _must_ be his girlfriend!”

“That...doesn’t seem right…” she said doubtfully. “I should just ask.”

Alayna waved her hand in dismissal. “Ok, but think of it this way: What if he’s on the fence? Blowing him will secure that relationship, because he’ll realize you’re the whole package. Beauty, brains, bedroom skills. I mean, if you _are_ his girlfriend, you would want to do stuff like that for him, wouldn’t you? And have him return the favor?”

“Well…” She didn’t want to admit that she did often think of Sandor like that, among other things. “I suppose… you may have a point.”

“Damn right I do. Blow jobs aren’t that hard to do either. One, get his cock out and get him hard. Two, suck on him like a lollipop. Not one of those teeny lollipops either, like a big one that takes hours to whittle down. Got that? You have to pace yourself. It won’t take hours, but you want to make sure you can last as long as he does. Your jaw _will_ get tired. Actually, buy some lollipops and practice on those. When’s your next date again?”

Sansa was feeling a bit overwhelmed. She didn’t want to know where Alayna had learned such things. It was like learning Arya had lost her virginity to Gendry in middle school, too disturbing to contemplate and better for everyone if you just went with it. “Friday. We’re watching a movie at your place.”

“Perfect! Arya and I have a meet on Saturday and my mom is taking us. It starts super early, so we’re leaving on Friday night and we won’t be back until late afternoon the next day. You’ll have the whole house to yourself!”

“Oh boy…”

“Oh boy, is right!” Alayna said excitedly. “Seriously, though, he’s not going to ask you to do anything he thinks would make you uncomfortable, so you have to be the one who pushes him. I know he likes you, and you like him, and that’s totally cool. If you don’t want to do it, you don’t have to. I’m just saying, if you _want_ to, you should _totally_ do it.”

“Hmmm… I’ll think about it,” Sansa said, feeling like her head was going to explode from embarrassment. She really enjoyed hanging out with Alayna, but the girl had less sense of personal space than Arya or Rickon! “Can we please get back to studying now?”

Shae sat down beside them. “You speak of blowjobs, yes? You could go further, you know. You love him? You want him to be your first?”

Sansa frowned at her while Alayna giggled. “How do you know I haven't… _done it_ before? I could have, with my ex. You don't know.”

Shae patted her arm gently, almost in a motherly fashion. “You scream virgin. Do you deny?”

Sansa was about to protest, but sighed and slumped down on the table. _There is no way any studying is going to get done now,_ she thought as Shae and Alayna launched into everything she needed to know to take the next step with Sandor. She'd be lying if she said she hadn't thought about it. She smiled to herself. _And Sandor hates liars._

**********

“You’re a tootsie pop.”

“A what? No way.” He reached for the remote and pressed pause. They were in his bedroom, sitting on his bed, treating the twin bed like a sofa as they watched the dvd Sansa had brought, some hilariously bad and very random movie she picked up at the dollar store and eating some snacks she had made just for tonight. It was surreal, having an actual _girl_ in his personal space. She had spent a lot of time looking at his bookcase while he set up the movie. Most of the time when they hung out at either of their homes, it was in the living room or other family areas. Or her "office", since she liked to sew and talk. _So surreal._

The female protagonist in the movie had just called her love interest a cinnamon roll, a vague reference to some internet thing, and now Sansa was calling him a tootsie pop. “Yes way,” she said. “Would you rather I say you're like an onion? Like that ogre? You have layers, but you smell way nicer than an onion. Unless it's a caramelized onion, but you are more like baked goods kind of sweet--”

“Ok, fine, I’m a damn tootsie pop,” he conceded. She settled into his side and pressed play on the movie. He watched for a few minutes, not really paying attention. He grinned and said, “How about we see how many licks it takes to get to my cream center?” _Damn it all, why do I keep saying shit like that?!_ It was like his brain was trying to flirt, but his conscious mind was unaware or something.

She didn’t even look up at him. “Don’t ask Mr. Owl. He’s a bitey asshole.”

He winced. _Ouch._ “Fair enough.”

She looked past him, towards the bedroom door. Then, slowly, reached for his pants. He froze, scared to even breathe. _Shit, is she really going to… I was just kidding!!!_ His heartbeat sped up as she unzipped his jeans and reached her hand into his boxers. His cock had started hardening as soon as he had imagined her licking his “tootsie pop”, so it didn’t take too many strokes of her soft hand to get him fully hard. She glanced at the bedroom door again, then bent over and licked the tip before putting it inside her mouth. “Fuck, Sansa…” he moaned. A part of him was screaming to stop her, that it wasn’t right for such a high class girl to be sucking his low class dick. If anything, _he_ should be the one servicing her, not the other way around, and thinking about having his head in between her thighs did not help one bit. The rest of him was telling that part to shut the fuck up, because her mouth was magic. He briefly worried about how she could be so good, then remembered she was friends with Shae, who talked way too much about sex and he had never thought it before, but thank fuck for that, fuck fuck fuck, her mouth felt good.

When she stopped, he bit back a protest. She shouldn’t have been doing it anyway, and he could easily excuse himself to go take care of it in the bathroom. If she wanted to stop, he would be ok with that or kill himself trying. So when she got up, he thought it was to go get something to drink or maybe some more snacks, and not to place a pillow on the floor so that she could kneel in between his legs and keep going. “It was hurting my back a little,” she explained when he looked at her in disbelief. He could only nod and she started again, stroking the base of his cock and sucking on the top like he was the best tootsie pop ever _yes I am a tootsie pop, hard on the outside and with a chocolatey center but really only for her._ It was almost too much of a visual feast to see her. He leaned his head back and rested his hand on the back of her neck, stroking the soft skin there in encouragement. He felt his balls begin to tighten.

“Sansa… I’m going to come,” he warned her, thinking she would let go, but she doubled down and before he could stop her, he was ejaculating into her mouth. He felt her swallow it and was slightly horrified and slightly impressed. She grimaced from the taste, but wiped her mouth daintily as she sat up. He was breathing hard, still in some disbelief that it had just happened. _Sansa fucking Stark just sucked my dick._ They had barely made out a month ago, kissed here and there (ok, maybe more than that...) when they were alone and now…

She climbed back onto the bed, leaning back against the pillows lining the wall, and settled back at his side. “Was that ok?”

“You just swallowed a load of my cum. I think I can safely say it was damn fantastic.” He zipped his pants back up, feeling rather awkward to just have it lay there limply, then put his arm around her shoulders.

She giggled, suddenly shy. “I wasn’t sure. I've never done that before.”

“I’m guessing Shae told you about doing that?” Sansa hesitated, then nodded, giving him a sheepish look. “Figures. You don’t have to do that, you know. It’s fine for her, she likes to do it, but if you ever feel uncomfortable, you shouldn’t.” She looked up at him in confusion, but nodded again. They watched the rest of the movie in relative silence, with Sandor making snide comments in opportune moments and earning her laughter. She tried making some jokes, and they were funny, just not well timed, which was amusing in its own way. He was content with this, being her friend, being the one she felt safe with. He knew his place in her life and he ignored the tight feeling in his chest and stomach. _Just the practice dummy. Don’t mind me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #KidsTheseDays 
> 
> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 5pm and 7pm.


	14. Level Up

Once the movie was over, Sansa was too comfortable to move. “No, stay,” she said when he tried to get up.

“I should put the disk back in the case.” He didn’t sound like he was that committed to it.

“It’s not going anywhere,” she said softly, turning the tv off and setting the remote aside. They were cast in near darkness. His response to her advances earlier had her feeling powerful, even sexy, and she felt bold enough to crawl onto his lap, straddling him, and kiss him softly, slowly, coaxing his tongue to mingle with hers. She hoped enough time has passed that the taste of him from earlier wasn’t on her mouth, though Shae had said some guys like that sort of thing. Sandor said nothing about it either way, his hands exploring her body, slipping under her shirt, though not going any higher than her ribs. _He’s so innocent, in his own way,_ she thought, smiling to herself. She reached behind her back and unclasped her bra, slipping the straps off her shoulders and removing the confining article of clothing while leaving her shirt on. _Just for now,_ she thought. She then grasped Sandor’s wrists and pulled them up, so that his hands were on her breasts. They weren’t particularly large, not like some of the other girls at school, but she liked how they fit into his palms, and how he shuddered a little when he realized what she had done. She felt her body grow hotter as he tentatively touched her, his fingers rough on the soft skin, but pleasantly so. She could feel him getting hard again. _They last longer the second time,_ Shae’s voice echoed in her head.

“Sansa…” he groaned.

“Yes? Sandor…”

“What are you doing to me?” He almost sounded in pain.

“Seducing you?” she asked with a giggle. “Is it working?”

“Fuck…”

“I’ll take that as a yes,” she sighed into his mouth happily. “I have… I have some condoms… if you want to… go all the way?” She held her breath nervously. _What if he says no? What if he doesn't want me like that? It's one thing to do a blowjob, it's a completely other thing to have...have sex..._ Her face felt like a thousand suns, she was blushing so hard. _But I want to..._

“Do you want to?” he asked. She could barely see his face in the low light coming from the LEDs on his computer, but her eyes were adjusting and he was looking at her in amazement.

“I do…” she said, feather soft. “I’ve never… before… but I want you to be… I want you to be my first, Sandor.”

“Why? Why me?”

_Because I’m in love with you. Because I feel complete when I’m with you._ But she was too young to think things like that, and he might not be ready to hear it, such an innocent soul for romance and love that he was. “Who else should it possibly be besides you? You’re my best friend, the person I trust the most with everything. It could only be you,” she said, kissing him to express the words she couldn’t yet say. _I love you, Sandor. My heart and soul are yours, it is only right that my body is yours as well._

She felt his hands tighten on her waist and he ground her down on him. She gasped as she felt his dick press against her through his jeans. “I’ll take that as a yes, then,” she said breathlessly. She reached for his pants again, unbuttoning and unzipping them as he nearly tore his shirt off and then hers. It got stuck on her ear, earning an “ow!” from her.

“Shit, are you ok?”

“Yeah, just my ear…”

He touched her ear softly, kissing it better with a loud, playful smack. She giggled as he flipped her onto her back, nearly attacking her with fevered kisses. Her skirt and panties were gone quickly, and when she placed her hand on his hip, she felt only bare skin.

“Little bird…Sansa…” he murmured. “Are you sure you want to…”

She turned to find her purse. She pulled out the strip of condoms and tore one off, handing it to him. She had bought them only earlier that day, wanting to be prepared for when this moment would eventually arise, but she hadn’t expected to be so soon. Her heart was beating rapidly from excitement. “I can help you put it on, if you need it…”

“No, I got it…” he said, then under his breath, “I think…” She giggled as he spat out a string of curses, then asked for a second one when he realized he had put the first one on backwards and had to toss it. It was too funny, and once he had it on, he took a bit of revenge on her, tickling her until she gasped for air. “Cheeky little bird,” he growled playfully in her ear, sending delightful shivers down her spine, pushing her legs back and spreading them as he leaned in. He touched her _down there,_ and she gasped. “Are you ready?”

“Yes…” She suddenly remembered what Eliza had told her that first day she met Sandor. _How proper of you, saying please and thank you. I bet you even say it when you're being fucked._ It gave her a perverse sense of happiness to say, “Yes, please, Sandor. I’m ready.” He leaned down, kissing her, and she felt something pushing into her. _His dick, oh gods, this is really happening._ It hurt, but not as much as she had expected. She felt more stretched than in pain as he pushed into her, breathing hard, but it was in a good way. When his hips met her bottom, he stopped, and she noticed he was breathing just as hard as her.

“Are you ok?”

She really loved him. She felt like her heart was going to burst from happiness and she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him with everything she had. “Yes, I’m fine. Please, Sandor,” she begged. “Please, continue.”

It felt… interesting. There was a pleasant hum in her body as Sandor moved within her. _The first time can feel good, but more than likely it won’t,_ she remembered Shae saying. _As long as it doesn’t hurt too much, you’re doing good._

“Sansa… oh fuck, you feel really good…”

“Do I, baby?” she purred. She had no idea where the sexy siren attitude was coming from, but she liked it. Sandor seemed to like it, too.

He chuckled. “Do I really feel like a baby to you?” he asked, putting some extra _oomph_ in his thrust.

“Stud, then?” It was starting to feel a little better, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. She felt like a koala holding onto a tree with its whole body. _Sandor is a tree I’d climb any day._ “Do I feel good, stud?” _Please let him be enjoying this!_

“Fuck yes…"

"Me, too," she whispered. It wasn't a lie. Not one tiny bit, and she really liked how he was kissing her neck, though she kind of wish he would kiss her mouth instead. _I really like this, and I want to do this again, and again and again and again. I can't tell him how I feel with words, not yet, but I can tell him like this...he really feels so good!_ He was rubbing against something that felt so strange and so wonderful and was this what Shae had been talking about?

"Oh, fuck, I’m going to…”

“Yes, stud. Please, I want you to…” His movements became a little erratic, and his hand found its way between them, his thumb pressing against her clit, causing her to jolt. It was so unexpected, and felt so good as he rubbed it, she felt her body begin to shudder as waves of ecstasy rocked her. She barely heard his grunts and short string of expletives as he came. “Oh, gods… how did you… I thought… the first time… not good…”

“Ah… Tyrion may have mentioned how to make it…well, good. He and Bronn talk way too much about sex and techniques...” he said, pulling out of her and shifting his weight so that he could lie on his side next to her. She felt cold at the sudden loss of his warmth above her. She grabbed one of the shirts he had thrown on the floor, put it on, and shimmied under the covers, taking Sandor under with her. He was stiff with awkwardness as she got settled in, and didn’t relax until she stopped moving. “Comfortable?”

“Mmmhmm,” she said, his arm was around her shoulders. “Thank you, Sandor.”

“For what?” he asked.

“For making my first time…” _Awesome? Epic? Something I’ll never ever EVER forget?_ “Perfect.”

“Perfect would include flower petals, and harps, or a string quartet. Sonnets. Angels singing. Something more than a quick rut in my twin bed.” He sounded a little sad, “Ah, but I don’t mean… I mean… it’s not like I didn’t…”

She giggled, “I know what you mean. But, all of that stuff, it’s not like it would have made what just happened _better,_ you know? It was all I could ask for, and really, isn’t it more important to be with someone you want to be with, rather than the place or what’s going on around you?”

“I suppose,” he grumbled.

A thought struck her. “You… you don’t regret it… do you?” she asked carefully.

“Huh? Oh… Oh! No, of course not… I just…” He rubbed his hand against his face. “My feelings on the subject are complicated, if that makes sense.”

“Not really, but as long as you don’t regret it.”

“I don’t,” he whispered. “But if I don’t go clean up, I’m going to regret _that_ in the morning.” He got out of the bed and headed into the bathroom. Sansa flipped over onto her stomach and grabbed her phone from her purse.

**SS: Hey, can you do me a favor?**

**Shaester: If I am able**

**SS: I’m going to spend the night at Sandor’s, can I say I’m staying with you?**

**Shaester: OF COURSE. PAY ME IN DETAILS LATER, YES? :D**

She didn't want to tell Shae at all. Like Jaime, Shae was a bit of a blabbermouth, and if her brothers or Arya found out... Well, she knew Sandor could hold his own against them, but could she? They would tease her mercilessly! They wouldn't be mean about it, but... _At least it's easier to lie when they can't see my face._

**SS: Ehhhh, ok, but there's not much to tell. It's just late and I'm tired. And you can't tell ANYONE. Not even Tyrion. Got it??**

**Shaester: ;) my lips be sealed**

She quickly typed out a text to her mom, telling her she’d be staying over at Shae’s for the night and would come home by lunch tomorrow. She didn’t hit send just yet.

“Shit, I didn’t realize how late it was,” Sandor said, coming back out. He had put on some blue plaid pajama pants, no shirt. Sansa’s eyes had fully adjusted to the low light and she _really_ appreciated the view. “I should walk you home, else your parents are going to kill both of us.”

“What if… I stayed over?” she asked, sitting up in the bed.

“Your dad would _really_ kill me if you did that.”

“Not if they thought I was at Shae’s…” She held up her phone. “Who just agreed to cover for me. And I have a text ready to send to my mom if you say I can.”

He stared at her. “You really want to stay the night?”

“If you’re ok with it. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable… Shae said some guys don’t like the intimacy of sharing a bed after sex, which sounds silly to me, but-- Oomph!” He had knocked her down and was snuggling her, kicking the covers up and over them. “I guess that’s a yes, or at least I hope it is, because I just accidentally sent the text to my mom.”

“Yeah, you can stay,” he whispered. “I’ll make you breakfast in the morning.”

“Ooooohhh, I like that. I can help, if you want.”

“Nah. Let me have this, ok?”

She looked at him curiously, but didn’t press the issue. She didn’t understand what he meant, but if he wanted to make her breakfast, she wasn’t about to turn it down. Unless he burnt it. She couldn't quite reach his mouth, so she kissed him on his neck, tasting his skin, and spent several minutes marking him on his collarbone. _You're mine,_ she thought happily. _Now anyone who sees this will know it._

**********

Sandor woke slowly. Sansa was still asleep, snoring ever so softly, her arms tucked beneath her like a cat. _Even asleep she’s adorable._ He couldn’t believe they had had sex the night before. _A blowjob and sex, _ he corrected himself. _Two things I never thought I’d do with her, and they happened in the same night._

He watched her for a bit. _I shouldn't have had sex with her…_ He regretted and didn't regret it at the same time. She was everything he wanted, could ever dream of, and fuck did it feel right while they had been doing it, but she was too good for the likes of him. He tamped down the feelings and held her against him. Last night and right now, he could pretend. Pretend that he wasn't someone she was using for practice, pretend that she really did care deeply enough about him to _want_ him. He traced her lips with his finger. _So soft._ She made a face in her sleep. _Must have tickled,_ he thought with a smile. He placed a feather light kiss on her nose, then her eyelids, and then her lips. She gave a breathless little gasp and the kiss deepened. _I shouldn't be taking when she hasn't offered...but fuck... I want this. I want her, all of her._

“Sansa…”

She didn't say anything in response, but her hands were all over him. _She wants me, she wants me,_ he told himself. _Just a little longer to pretend…_

He was already between her legs, and she hadn't put her panties back on before going to bed. His stupid morning wood was sticking out from his pajama pants and he was inside her before he thought too hard about it. She clung to him, whispering his name as he moved inside her desperately, willing her to love him, if just for the moment. _Fuck, I love you, Sansa. I fucking love you so much I feel like I'm going to fucking die when you leave me for some shitbag loser who can't possibly love you as much as I do. Such an idiot, to lose it over a girl, but you're worth it. I'll take my shame of coveting you and anything else you're willing to give me, so let me have my make believe, let me have this…_

She clenched him tightly and he came with a shudder and her name on his lips. Collapsing against her, he buried his face against the side of her silky smooth throat. She held him, stroking the back of his neck, her legs holding him in place as his cock twitched and softened inside her. _I love you,_ he thought. _Fuck, I'm doomed._

They eventually got up once their bladders couldn't wait any longer. Sandor let Sansa use his bathroom and took himself down the hall to the bathroom there. He was startled to see a small bruise on his collar bone and realized with a goofy grin that Sansa had given him a hickey. She had been working on that spot for several minutes while they cuddled, but he hadn’t realized why. _She really is experimenting with everything, isn't she?_ It was bittersweet to see it, but more sweet than bitter at the moment.

He went down to the kitchen after and debated on what to make for her. _What is that stereotype in the movies and on tv? Pancakes, I think. I can totally make pancakes. Maybe some eggs, too._

He felt very hyper aware of just about everything. When Sansa came into the kitchen, he knew she was there without even turning around or hearing her enter. He just _knew._

_I am a Jedi!_ His thoughts were strange this morning, but he had had sex with the girl he was in love with, who saw him only as a friend. Twice. Nothing was stranger than that.

When he did turn, he had a plate of pancakes and scrambled eggs for her. She had showered, and his body reacted to the visual thought of her in his shower. Wet. Naked. Soapy. _Fuck._ He quickly sat down with his own plate and dug in. The last thing he wanted was for Sansa to think he was some kind of sex fiend. He had always thought he was above this sort of thing, ever since that incident when he was a freshman, but he was a fucking teenager, for crying out loud. A teenage boy in love with a girl who had allowed him the privilege of being her first encounter with sex. It was a wonder he wasn't trying to convince her to do it again, in just about every room in his house. _Shit, now I can't stop picturing how I would do it. Doggy style in the living room. Against the bookshelf wall in the living room. On this very counter in the kitchen…_ It took him a second to realize Sansa was saying something.

“--and I was _hoping_ you'd like to go. With me, I mean,” she said, looking up at him with hope in her eyes.

“Yeah, of course. Just tell me when and where the day before.”

She gave him an odd look, but then shook her head and laughed. “Probably should iron out the details _sooner_ than that, but we can talk about it later. You're really good at cooking.”

“Just breakfast. Lunch or dinner stuff, I tend to ruin it. No idea why.” She giggled and he wanted to hear her do it again. _I want to hear all of her sounds, be there for all of her moments, when she laughs, when she cries, when she yells, when she's scared, all of it. Tell her. Tell her how you feel about her. Tell her you love her!_

“Sansa… I…” The kitchen phone rang shrilly, startling the two of them from their seats. They laughed as he went to pick it up. “Hello?”

_“Hey, it's me,”_ Alayna said. _“Can I speak to Sansa real quick?”_

“Yeah, sure, she's right here. Hold on,” he said and was about to hand the phone to Sansa. She gave him a panicked look before he realized. “Shit! I mean…”

Alayna howled with laughter. _“Busted! Did you guys fuck?”_

“For fuck’s sake, even if we did, it wouldn't be any of your business! We fell asleep watching a movie, that's all.” He looked over at Sansa, who gave him a thumbs up.

_“Boooooooo. That means you didn't have the balls to make a move on her.”_ She wasn't wrong. _“Did she at least suck your dick?”_

“How the hell are we possibly related?”

She laughed. _“Guess not then… Anyway, just letting you know we're in our way home. Oh, and if you're planning on asking Sansa to prom, do it now. I heard that Hardyng asked her. Little snot. His number two girlfriend Myranda is on the archery team and she was venting about it the entire way up. I knew he had asked her out, but Myranda’s pissed because she thinks Sansa will say yes to the prom. Claims she saw them getting cozy in the library or some shit like that. But if_ _you_ _ask her...”_

He glanced at Sansa, who had gone back to eating. He couldn’t hear anything else his sister was saying, despite the fact that she was still talking. Harrold “Harry” Hardyng, the ultimate playboy of Kingswood, the guy all the girls wanted. He was rich, charming, handsome, and just dumb enough to not threaten the more intelligent girls he went after, but smart enough to impress the idiots. Sansa definitely fell into the former category, and the picture of the two of them together was an ideal couple. Why would she go with him to prom, or any dates in general, if she had Harry on the hook? _Shit… I'm too late..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will be posted between 4pm and 6pm.
> 
> Also... Please don't kill me...


	15. Indulging

Things were a lot awkward with Sandor right after they had sex. Sansa couldn't stop giggling and blushing. Or touching him. It was so different from when she had been dating Joffrey. With him, she had never felt this easy connection, this lighthearted companionship. Joffrey had been demanding of her time, her attention, and Sandor wasn't like that at all. He commanded her attention with his own to her, with all his endearing qualities. Joffrey had tried to pressure her into all of the things she wanted to do with Sandor, all the things that felt natural to do with Sandor, and Joffrey had made her feel guilty when she didn't do them. It made her love him all the more to know that he made sure she was consenting of her own free will.

He was a bit silent when he walked her home, but he was all smiles when she kissed him and said she hoped they could do _that_ again sometime. She blushed deeply as she thought about how he had felt last night and this morning. _No wonder Shae is almost never sad! How can she be when Tyrion makes her feel like that all the time._

“You really want to? Again?” he asked, sounding cautiously hopeful.

“Of course! I mean, I assumed you would want to as well. Last night was...wow, and then this morning...just... _wow._ So, yes...I would _really_ like to again. Don't you?” she teased him. He went really red and nodded. “Then, until I see you again, text me. Oh, and until we can do _that_ again, maybe we can try… sexy texts?”

“You mean sexts?” A little half smile from him.

“Yeah, that, and...and pictures? Maybe?” She bit her lip nervously, trying to not smile too broadly.

“You want to send pictures…” He looked really amused by that.

“And _receive_ them. This isn't a one way street, Sandor!” She giggled and he nodded very mock seriously. “And maybe...phone calls, too?” They rarely spoke on the phone, mostly texted and she liked that, but if they were going to do sexy stuff, she really wanted to be able to hear his voice.

“Sure, whatever you want. I am your humble servant,” he said with a soft smile. “My lady.”

“I prefer ‘little bird’.”

“My little bird, then.” He smiled, such a gentle and soft smile, almost a little forlorn, but surely he wouldn’t be feeling that.

She nodded, feeling happier by the second. “Yes, please, I like that.” She kissed Sandor goodbye and walked the rest of the way home alone.

^v^v^v^v^

Over the winter break, she was either at Sandor's house or he was at hers,  nearly every day. Very little else changed in their relationship, for which she was grateful. Really, everything they had been doing before had _basically_ been dating, they had both been too silly to realize it. And _now…_ now she could kiss him whenever she wanted, text him her secret thoughts and hear his, though it worried her that he was a bit reluctant to share them. She had sent him one not-so-innocent-but-still-innocent picture and had received a _very_ racy photo in return that she liked to look at late at night when the rest of the house was asleep, because if she looked at it during the day, her family would know. _They would know._ He had laughed when she told him and then proceeded to send more. She had tried so hard to take a full racy shot, but in the end, couldn't and told him he would have to take the photos himself, which resulted in an impromptu photo shoot when her parents and siblings were out visiting friends.

He had been right about one thing though, she was much more comfortable thinking the word “dick”. One day, she'd even be able to say it. Thinking the word “cock” was going to take some more work though. She kept turning completely red whenever she thought it.

“You want to go see a movie tonight?” he asked a few weeks later, almost nonchalantly, but she could _hear_ the stupid grin on his face.

“Wha-- I… Ah…” Not that she could blame him. He had earned the right to grin that broadly.

They were in her bedroom, her bra was...somewhere. Probably with her socks. And her panties. All she had on was her skirt and the unbuttoned top from her previous school uniform, a public school, which oddly looked a lot like a Faith of the Seven private school uniform, which Sandor sometimes insisted she wear. Something about how he liked thinking that he had corrupted an innocent with lust. She would just giggle and go along with it. Sometimes, she liked thinking she had been corrupted, but by Sandor, not lust. Right at the moment, however, she couldn't think much of anything. Sandor had used his tongue on her… down _there._ Forcing herself to think it, _On my clit...my...my cunt..._ She felt like jelly. Wonderfully jelly-tastic. She had given him more than a few blowjobs since the first one, but this had been the first time he had done something similar to her, and she was in completely amazement. He had told her he was nervous, and had been studying techniques on the internet.

He laughed at her inability to respond. “Right, I suppose that can wait a bit. Can I… ah…”

She smiled. She liked that she still made him as nervous as he made her, even though the change in their relationship had happened a little over three weeks ago. “Please…yes...” she managed to say. She heard him rip open a condom wrapper and then he was on top of her. She couldn't really move, being made of jelly, but she watched him, felt him, enjoyed him, enjoyed watching him enjoy her. Was that weird? _If this is wrong, I don't want to be right._ The now familiar heat began to coil in her belly as he moved inside her, his mouth on her breasts. _They'll grow bigger, I swear!_ she thought, but he seemed to like them all the same.

She gained back some bone structure as he made love to her, enough to lift her legs and wrap them around his waist. He liked it when she did that. Enough bone structure to lift her arms and pull him down to kiss her. He really liked it when she did that. _I love you, Sandor. I love you._ She still hadn't had the courage to tell him. She wanted to, had almost said it a few times, but it was always _too soon._ She didn't care, but he might. _He might freak out,_ but that was her cowardice talking. If she said the words, who know what would happen? She knew how he felt. He told her in every kiss and with every fiber of his being. He loved her. But he didn't say the words either, so she felt better about having not said them.

“Sansa…” he uttered as his movements started to become erratic. He slipped his hand between them, his thumb finding her nub and brought them both to completion at almost the same time. He had gotten _really_ good at reading her body. She was still working on learning his, but he didn’t seem to mind. “Fuck…” he said, burying his face in her neck. She giggled.

“So, you were talking about a movie?” she asked, her arms still around his neck. He chuckled and nodded. “I’ve got the tickets if you’ve got the snacks?”

“Yeah, sure. Just got paid. We should probably get dressed,” he pointed out, laughing.

“Booooooooooo.” He laughed harder.

**********

“So...you’ve been spending a lot of time with Sansa,” his mom said when he got home that night. “Are you two an item?”

“No, we’re just friends.” _Friends with benefits,_ he thought, though he wished they could be more. They had been together nearly every day of the winter break, fucking every time they had a chance. When she wrapped herself around him, he could almost forget that it wasn’t real and afterwards, he tried not to think of why she was so eager, even if it was his name she said when she came. _Maybe if I make her come enough times...she’ll forget about Harry._

“Oh...but Catelyn said…”

“We’re best friends, Mom. I think it gets confusing since we’re a male and a female.” He was fairly certain his mom would kill him if she knew about the _benefits_ part of their friendship.

“Hmph, well, hopefully you both will come to your senses and see what is inevitable.” His mother sniffed at him and went back to cooking. "Dinner will be ready soonish."

He kissed her on her cheek and wandered off to his room to wait until she called him.

**LittleBird: Get home out?**

**I mean, get home ok*?**

**SC: Yeah.**

**LittleBird: Um... I was thinking... when we get back to school... PDAs or no? I'm a little shy about it, but I also like kissing you a LOT... <3**

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He had been dreading this. On the one hand, if she publicly kissed him, everyone would think they were together. On the other hand, when she stopped using him as a practice dummy and started dating Harry for real, he'd suffer more for it.

**SC: Ha ha. Same. Ah, no PDAs. I always get mad at Bronn when he practically humps Lollys, even if she doesn't mind.**

**LittleBird: OOoooooooookkaaaaaaaayyyyyyy. :(**

**wait...**

**SC: What?**

**LittleBird: Secret kissing? :D Dark corners, frantically stolen moments before we're discovered?! It's like a torrid love affair in a romance novel! :D :D :D**

**SC: ...**

**LittleBird: ?**

**Wait a minute...  
**

**Your laughing at me right now, aren't you? :P**

**You're***

**SC: Only a lot.**

**LittleBird: Punk! See if I give you secret kisses now. *POUT***

**SC: You'll crumble on that as soon as I get you behind the bleachers.**

**LittleBird: ~O.O~**

**yeah...probably... :3  
**

**Night, Sandorfus  
**

**SC: Night, little bird**

He put his phone to the side. School would restart on Monday and he wanted to relax a bit. When he returned to his room after dinner, he pulled down a workbook from his collection, one of the harder ones, gifted to him by Sansa for Christmas. She had written on the first page, _To my favorite guy, from your favorite girl. Don’t worry, I won’t tell Jaime. Pins and Spiders, Sansa._ It made him laugh every time he saw that. She had admitted that Alayna had helped her pick out one he didn't have yet, but the fact that she had specifically thought to get him something like this made him smile. He entertained himself for hours, losing himself in the numbers and equations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be between 6pm and 8pm.
> 
> Sandor's an idiot. -_-'
> 
> Bonus Question: What's Sandor's part time job? First person to answer correctly gets an extra 2 points.  
> Please post Bonus Question Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled.  
> Edit: Ok, I think I got the time stamps correct, meaning Schave7728 got the points extra today. :) Sandor does lawn work on a regular basis as his job.  
> Edit - Correction: Az got the answer two minutes earlier than Schave. That was my bad, I am so sorry.


	16. Extracurricular Activities

Sansa wondered if anyone could tell the difference, if they would notice the change. She kind of wanted someone to comment on it, but at the same time, she liked that all the girlfriend stuff she was doing was really old hat to everyone. _It’s like they don’t notice because it’s been there all along._ That really made her smile.

School started up again, and Eliza hadn’t bothered her at all. She partially attributed that to being surrounded by people all the time, but she also hoped it was because Eliza had lost interest. Sometimes she felt someone glaring at her, but she refused to look, and would keep her eyes straight ahead.

“So, you joining any clubs this semester?” Brienne asked her as they walked to their respective classes.

“I kind of want to, but there aren’t really any clubs I’m interested in. Not exactly a home ec club around, or a sewing group, or really any craft clubs. Sandor’s thinking of joining an academic club, but that’s not really something I would do. Arya’s still going strong in the archery club--”

“She would have done well in the fencing club if it weren’t for Alayna!” Brienne interjected.

Sansa laughed. “Probably. Bran wants to join the fencing club once he gets to high school, but he’s still two years away.”

“If he’s anything like Arya, I’m sure he’ll excel at it. Back to you though, you could try starting a club. All you need is four starting members, including yourself, and an advisor. Miss Ellaria is probably your best bet, being the art teacher, and she loves helping students out. Besides that, if she knows your Sandor’s girlfriend, she’ll jump at the chance to help you specifically.”

“Really? Why’s that?”

Brienne leaned in to whisper, “I heard Sandor’s become her pet project. He has some technical talent, but no interest in art, no passion. So she’s trying to get one _good_ project out of him. At least, that’s what Jaime said.”

“Some technical talent?”

“He’s no prodigy, but he’s better than most of the other students,” Brienne clarified.

“Ah. I’ll think about it.”

^v^v^v^v^

Later that day, Sansa found herself outside the art room. It was a little sad that there was only one art teacher for the entire school, but not enough students signed up for the class, and it was usually because there was no other elective to take. Sandor had admitted to her that he, Bronn and Jaime had missed out on woodshop because Jaime got into a fight with someone who insulted Brienne and they were late to sign up.

Miss Ellaria was on the phone, but she motioned for Sansa to come into the room. As she waited, she looked around the room at the student work that was posted up. Many of the student names were unknown to her, but she found Jaime’s easily enough. The project was watercolors, and his was messy and vivid and so full of life. She could feel his energy spiking through, even if the quality was on the lower side. Bronn’s was next. His was dark, brooding, unlike his usual boisterous energy. She might even describe his work as mysterious. There was a spark on the edge, a bright yellow that pierced through the darkness. It ended up being a bit calming, bringing balance to the rest of the blacks and browns used. Sandor’s was last. It was...there. _Brienne wasn’t kidding._ It was as close to flawless as an amateur in high school could get without being considered “talented at art”, but it had no soul. His personality was missing and it left the piece feeling cold, despite the use of color in the landscape. It sort of looked like a place downtown, but the buildings were lifeless and nothing was identifiable.

“Lacking, is it not?” Miss Ellaria asked, startling Sansa. “Ah, forgive me. You were frowning at such a colorful piece, I thought you see it as I see it, despite the adequate skill in it.”

“Oh, yes...it’s… skillful.”

Miss Ellaria laughed. “You can speak truth. I see it in your eyes. The artist won’t find out from me.”

Sansa gave her a small smile. “It feels sad, but not because it emotes sadness, but because it emotes nothing. It’s like Sandor was just going through the motions, and not thinking about why he was putting this image down on paper.”

“Ah! A lovely girl after my own heart,” Miss Ellaria said. “You know young Clegane?”

“Yes… we’re… um...we just started dating not long ago,” Sansa admitted softly. It was the first time she had said it outloud and she felt her cheeks start to burn with a blush. “It’s still new, to say it…”

Miss Ellaria was hugging her. “You must be the reason!”

“I’m sorry?”

“Young Clegane, this is his earlier work, from the beginning of year,” she said, pointing at the watercolor. She went over to a set of drawers and pulled out a giant brown paper portfolio. Sandor’s name was written in his clean, neat handwriting in the corner. “This is his most recent work.” She showed Sansa some drawings, charcoal, color pencil, and ink. “See? More life in these.”

_Dogs. And lots of birds,_ she noticed. _Lots of little birds._ It was practically a signature. “They’re much better. I can see him in them.”

“I worried about the boy, but he is in good hands. Here, keep this one. He won't notice it missing. Now, what can I help you for?” she asked as she put the rest of the drawings and portfolio away.

“Um, I wanted to join a club, but there’s not a lot of options outside of academic and sports. I was hoping you could recommend something, or…” _Be brave, Sansa! You’re not the same girl you were in King’s Landing! Be brave like a lady in a song! Or whatever applies to having the courage to start a club!_ “Or maybe help me start a crafting club?”

“Oh! A creative collective maybe? A place to be able to share ideas, no matter the medium?” Miss Ellaria asked, a sparkle in her eye.

“Yes! Something like that. I design clothing and sew, but I do realize that not a lot of people do that sort of thing.” Sansa had hope, that maybe this idea could work.

“I will ask in my classes, and post a sign up sheet. If you come after school, maybe tomorrow or day after, we can make some posters, yes?”

“Yes! I can do that,” Sansa said. Maybe she could get some of her friends to help, even if they didn’t join. She couldn’t wait.

**********

“You’re trying out for _mathletes?!”_ Jaime asked as they helped Sansa and Miss Ellaria make posters for an art club. “Seriously?!”

Sandor raised his good eyebrow at him. “Yeah, why not? If I can prove how good I am, winning at one of the competitions, then I can apply for the Oldtown scholarship. It’s a _full ride._ How do you not understand that?” Sandor asked him.

“Forgive my brother, but he has never fully grasped that some people prefer to use their minds as weapons, instead of their fists,” Tyrion said, sighing heavily and reminding Sandor of a world weary old man. “I, for one, think it’s a noble endeavor and will welcome you with open arms to the team. You’re a shoe in based on what I know of you.”

“You’re in the mathletes?” He hadn’t met anyone other than the club advisor, Mr. Selmy, who had taken his application with great enthusiasm.

“Co-captain, three years running, and aiming for a fourth year.” Tyrion grinned. “I’m awesome at it.”

“Who’s the other co-captain?”

“The weird foreign kid, Varys. The one that dresses like a monk and shaves his head? You’ve seen him. Or at least he’s seen you. I swear, he’s _got_ to be the voice behind the gossip column in the school newspaper,” Jaime said. “He just _knows_ things.”

“How did I not know you were in mathletes?” Sandor asked, ignoring Jaime as he kept rattling off reasons why Varys was the devil.

“I don't really talk about it. If I had known sooner about your mathematical talents, I probably would have. Truthfully, I only found out because you applied and Varys looked into you. I had no idea you were so phenomenal at it.” Tyrion was concentrating on the letters he was painting, his brow furrowed.

“Yeah, seems to be a Clegane talent. Alayna and Eliza are the same. Our grandmother was a prodigy or something, I think. Worked as a NASA computer back in the day. Oddly enough, Dad can barely do basic math. Must have skipped a generation, I guess.” He looked over at Sansa, who was talking animatedly to Miss Ellaria while working on her own poster. “You think this club will be successful?”

“Mathletes?”

“The Art Collective, weirdo. Do you think it’ll do well? Sansa’s really excited about it. I don’t want her to be, you know, disappointed.”

“Such a concerned boyfriend you are,” Tyrion smirked. Sandor growled at him. He hated being reminded. _I’m just a practice dummy._ “Anyway, I’m…not sure. Kingswood tends to have jocks, band geeks, rockers, delinquents, emos, gear heads, but artists? Not so much. And people are into looking good, but not really into the crafting aspect of it. I’m hoping it does well, but I don’t have a lot of hope to go on. There’s a reason we haven’t had a club like this before.”

“Hmm…”

“Silver lining, she’ll need consoling if it goes belly up?” Tyrion offered, though Sandor could tell he didn’t feel that great about it.

Two weeks later, Sansa was in his room, lying under his comforter, sobbing quietly, as he sat on the floor next to his bed. She had asked to be left alone, but hadn’t objected to him sitting close by.

They had put posters up all over school, made sure people knew it was for _anyone_ interested in being creative, for all experience levels, and on the day of the first meetup, no one had shown up. Sandor had been at mathletes, and had been nervous the entire time, blowing a (relatively) simple problem that he normally could have solved in his sleep. Once the club let out, he ran over to the art room to find Miss Ellaria consoling Sansa. He thanked his teacher, and led Sansa away.

“Maybe I’m just meant to be alone in my hobby,” he heard from beneath the comforter. He looked up to see her peeking out from under the cover. “You think?”

“I think that what you do is very underrated. And if you’re the only one doing it, then that just means you’ll stand out more when you shine.” It sounded inspirational in his head, but a little corny once he said it outloud.

“Maybe… I would like a cuddle now, please?” She was already creeping to the edge of the bed. He smiled and held his arms out as she toppled on top of him, covering them both with the comforter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will be posted between 11am and 1pm.


	17. Valentine’s Day Is But Once A Year

Valentine's Day was the most romantic day of the year. _So how did I get stuck with babysitting duty?_ Sansa asked herself as she stirred the boiling pot of macaroni.

“We can study at your place,” Sandor had told her. “And I'll help you babysit.”

“Rickon’s not a baby. He's six. He’ll kick you if he hears you say ‘babysitter’ or ‘babysitting’ and he kicks _hard,”_ she warned him.

“Long as he can't reach my nuts, should be fine. I'll be needing those later,” he had said with a grin.

Sansa blushed at the memory as she continued to stir the pasta noodles. It was their first Valentine's Day together and it _should_ have been romantic, but it was going to be watching over her youngest brother and doing homework on a school night instead. Her parents had given the okay for Sandor to join her for babysitting Rickon. _If only they knew what we have planned once Rickon goes to bed._

The rest of her family, even Bran, were out on dates. Sansa had been planning on making a cozy, _romantic_ dinner for two, but her mom had quashed that, promising to pay for a dinner at any place of Sansa's choosing on Saturday if she could just be a dear and watch her brother because the friend’s sleepover he was _supposed_ to be at had been cancelled due to the friend being sick. So, the romantic dinner and sexy times had become a Rickon friendly dinner, studying until he went to bed and then sexy time _if_ her parents and siblings stayed out late enough.

The doorbell rang and Sansa heard Rickon’s thundering footsteps as he raced to the door to answer it. “Ask who it is before opening the door!” she yelled.

“Sandor!” she heard Rickon shout. Of all of her siblings, Rickon was the most enthusiastic about Sandor. He thought his scars were super cool and made him look like an anti-hero out of a comic book.

“You're suppose to ask who it is first,” she heard her boyfriend growl. It still made her giggle, to think of him as _her boyfriend._

“But I saw you through the window!” Rickon argued as they walked into the kitchen. Sandor grumbled about “kid logic” and Sansa kissed him hello.

He handed her a small box of chocolates truffles from Godiva, her favorite kind. “Happy Valentine’s Day. Smells good,” he said, nuzzling her cheek. “The food, too.”

She giggled and beckoned him to come closer. “Rickon approved, fish sticks and macaroni, coming right up.”

“Not the only thing _coming_ tonight,” he said, grinning and pressing his lips to hers.

“Eeeeewwwww, what are you kissing Sansa for? She's a _girl,”_ Rickon complained.

Sansa laughed as Sandor tried to answer the disgusted six-year-old. She supposed he had forgotten they had an audience. He _really_ wasn’t one for PDAs. “Who else was I supposed to kiss then?” he finally sputtered.

Rickon just shrugged.

“Rickon, sometimes boys and girls kiss. Mom is a girl, and Dad is a boy. They kiss all the time,” she pointed out.

“But Mommy and Daddy are Mommy and Daddy!” He looked at Sandor and then back at Sansa. “Does this mean you and Sandor are married?!?!?” he screamed in excitement.

Sandor growled at him again. “You don't need to be married to kiss someone!”

“But if you're married, then you could be my brother!” The look of happiness on Rickon's face was too much for Sansa and she laughed. Sandor glared at her, and she giggled even harder.

“We're a bit young to be thinking of marriage, Rickon,” she said gently, but she couldn’t stop smiling.

“Are you going to marry Sandor?”

Sansa suddenly imagined herself walking down the aisle towards Sandor.  He would be dressed in a white button up shirt, with a rich, dark green vest, black slacks and his hair pulled up in a Northern style. She would wear something lacy, with long sleeves, a snug bodice, flowing skirt that barely grazed the floor, her hair down and brushed to a shine, a bouquet of Grandpa Rickard’s blue Winterfell roses in her hand…

She shook her head. “Rickon, I told you. We’re too young for that sort of talk. Now go clean up. Dinner will be ready in five minutes.”

She turned back to the stove and took the pot off to drain the water into the sink. “I'm sorry about Rickon,” she told Sandor. “He gets so inquisitive, to the point of rudeness.” She couldn't look at him. If she looked at him, he would know that despite what she said, she _had_ been thinking about it. She hadn't told him she loved him yet, there was no way she could let him know she had just thought about marrying him someday!

“It's ok. Never thought I'd marry to begin with, so getting asked by a punk kid kind of threw me.”

“Never?” _But, not anymore, because you have me, right?_ She wanted to ask, but that would be a bit forward.

He gestured to his scars. “They're a bit off putting.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Well, don't let them be. I'm sure… I'm sure your future wife won't find them to be as such. I don't …you know...” She glanced shyly at him, looking him in those beautiful Valyrian steel eyes, and there was a moment, a spark, and _he knew,_ he must have known, but the moment ended too soon as Rickon came tearing into the kitchen.

Sansa finished getting the food ready and served the fish sticks and macaroni on Rickon's favorite plates, the plastic ones with space pirates on them. Sandor told Rickon about school, asked him questions about kindergarten, if he was excited to start “real school” next year. It felt...cozy. Not like what she had planned, but nice nonetheless. The landline rang as Sansa was getting seconds for everyone, but Sandor shooed her away, telling her he could handle feeding a punk kid.

“Stark residence, Sansa speaking,” she answered.

_“Oh, thank goodness! Sansa, it’s Margaery. I’m outside and I have a fashion emergency! You weren’t answering your phone so I called the house line.”_

“I think I left my phone on the charger. I’ll let you in.” She hung up the phone and turned to Sandor and Rickon. “Hey, guys, I have a client that needs some emergency care, will you be ok for a little while?”

Sandor nodded as Rickon stole a fish stick from his plate. “Take your time. Let us know if you need anything.”

Sansa went to the door. Margaery… She had not been joking. “Oh, wow…”

“You see what I’m talking about,” Margaery said, walking in with her dress in tatters. “Daario has some stalker fans, and I am _not_ about to let them ruin my night. I wasn’t sure if you’d be here or not, but I’m desperate.”

“Yeah, sure, not a problem. We were just having some dinner, making sure Rickon didn’t try to make his own food and eat mud pies again.”

“The chocolate dessert?”

“No.”

“Ah, little brothers. I’m glad I was the baby of the family,” Margaery said.

“Well, I can’t salvage this outfit in twelve hours, much less the amount of time before your date--”

“I have to be back in King’s Landing in an hour.” Margaery looked apologetic, at least.

Sansa sighed. She had _not_ missed this aspect of her friend. Margaery was definitely the epitome of spoiled rich girl, but at least she was a sweetheart. Usually. The gods help the people who managed to piss her off. “Right. Plan B, I have something that will work for you, and only minor alterations needed. Come on.”

She found a dress she had been working on just the other day, and had Margaery try it on. As she was pinning it, Margaery asked, “So...who’s watching Rickon right now? Robb? Jon?” Margaery had had such a lady boner for both of Sansa’s brothers when they had lived in King’s Landing.

“No, they’re both out. Robb has a new girlfriend, and Ygritte is in town visiting Jon. Um… my… my boyfriend, he’s with Rickon right now,” Sansa said through the pins she was holding carefully in her mouth.

“Go on! What’s his name? What’s he like? You never tell me anything anymore!” Margaery said, wiggling a little and getting stabbed by a pin in the process. “Ow.”

“Hold still then! I haven’t seen you in ages, and you’re too busy to text me back, so what did you expect?” she asked, teasing her friend. “Tell me about this date. You’re seeing Daario now? How’s he doing?”

Margaery fidgeted, but knew how stubborn Sansa could be when she set her mind to it. “He’s doing well. He was going after Daenerys for a while, but she kept shooting him down. So I swooped in to be his rebound.”

Sansa’s hands went still as she looked up at her friend. “And...you don’t mind that? That he prefers Daenerys?”

Margaery giggled, “Oh, Sansa honey, who wouldn’t? I know if she ever crooked her little finger at me, I’d dump Daario in a heartbeat! Alas, she tends to favor Jon’s Wildling. And I know for a fact that Jon doesn’t mind Ygritte making out with her. Or other things.” She gave Sansa a comical wink. “But the only _guy_ Daenerys has eyes for is her boyfriend, a guy who doesn’t even go to our school. She’s so secretive about him, I think because of her dad and brother. Not the eldest one, gods, he’s hot...the second brother, crazy Viserys. He’s wild in bed, I hear, but sooooo not worth the drama. Loras made a play for him once, before leaving for the silver screen.” Margaery sighed melodramatically.

Sansa laughed softly, shaking herself from her shock at Margaery’s words. “Speaking of...I saw Loras’ movie last week. I almost couldn’t believe it. I had to stare at the movie poster for nearly five whole minutes before it really sunk in. I _know_ a movie star. So surreal. Actually, I saw that movie poster the day I met my boyfriend.”

Margaery whined, wanting to ask for details.

“Alright, alright, I’ll tell you about him. His name is Sandor, and he’s…”

“Wait… Sandor? As in Sandor _the Hound_ Clegane?!” Margaery shrieked. “Ohmygahd! How did you manage that? He’s legendary! They say he can stop an opposing linebacker with _just_ his glare.”

Sansa had seen his death glare a few times, and she could see why people would say that. “I don’t know about stopping someone on the field with _just_ his glare, but yeah, he seems to be legendary around school, too. My dad goes into fanboy mode whenever he comes around. He rescued me from a bully, we became friends, and then started dating. He’s very sweet to me, very considerate. Oh, please don't spread it around though. I don't want it getting back to Joff. Ok, I’ve got it pinned. You know the drill. We will carefully remove it, and then I will quickly sew it. You’ll be done and out in half an hour.”

“My lips are sealed. Joffrey will _not_ find out from me. Tell me more about him, as you work,” Margaery said, pulling up a chair next to Sansa’s sewing machine. She sighed and got to sewing, talking as the machine’s rhythmic hum filled the air. Margaery insisted on paying her double, plus added in a rush charge, which Sansa had protested, but Margaery hadn’t listened. “I would pay quadruple for this quality,” she told her.

After Margaery’s situation was dealt with, Sansa pushed her friend out the door, refusing to let her be any later to her date and returned to the kitchen. She found Sandor lecturing Rickon on proper etiquette for dunking cookies in milk. “No, you little punk, if you do it like that, you’re going to make a mess and the ratio of milk to cookie will be way off balance.”

“What’s a ray-sho?”

“Ratio, it’s the quantitative relation between two amounts showing the number of times one value contains or is contained within the other.”

Rickon’s little face screwed up in confusion. “Wha--”

“It means how much you have on one part, compared to the second part. In this case, the first part is the milk, and the second part is the cookie. Ok?” Rickon nodded. He understood snacks. “Ok, so, by not letting the milk run off the cookie after dunking it, you’ll have too much milk for the amount of cookie you have. You won’t be able to enjoy the taste of the cookie as much.” Rickon’s eyes went wide in horror. “So, let the milk drip back into the glass, once it slows to one drop per ‘one riverlands, two riverlands,’ then… _then,_ you should eat it. Get it?”

“Got it!”

“Good. Oh, hey Sansa. Cookie?” Sandor held out a plate of cookies and she saw he had poured three glasses of milk. If she hadn’t been in love already, she would have fallen for him in this moment.

**********

“Rickon’s asleep,” Sansa whispered as she led him to her bedroom. “I’ve got something for you.”

Sandor eyed the backside of the pretty girl holding his hand as they walked. Rickon had been too excited to sleep, had actively fought it as Sansa read him story after story. Finally, the punk had nodded off, and Sandor had been extra quiet, just to make sure he didn’t wake the kid up again.

As soon as the bedroom door was closed, she was kissing him, his hands touching where he couldn’t while her brother was in the room. It was Valentine’s Day, and while he couldn’t be a real boyfriend to Sansa, he was damned sure he was going to be the best practice dummy ever and make this a Valentine’s Day she wouldn’t forget. Unless her family got home before he could.

Sansa squealed, telling him to wait, but she was pulling at him to continue. He kept going until she was gasping and begging for him. He was feeling rather smug after it was over. Sansa was curled up to him, nearly purring like a cat. “What did you say?” he asked, after she mumbled something into his chest.

“Oh… um… I have something for you. For Valentine’s Day.”

“I thought that was my valentine’s gift? It was an awesome one, by the way.”

“Well, I guess if you don't want what I got you… I could just give it to my _other boyfriend,”_ she said, rolling her eyes. He knew she was just teasing him, she wouldn't have just let him fuck her if she had a real boyfriend instead of his pathetic practice dummy status, but fuck it all, his chest clenched.

He forced his voice to be relatively calm, “Alright...give it over.”

She giggled and turned away from him to reach for a small plain felt bag. She dropped it in his hand. “I hope you like it,” she said softly.

He overturned the bag, letting the contents fall into his palm. It was a thick leather strap, with a circular pendant. He look at the pendant closely. Etched into it was a dog, looking up at a little bird, who was looking back at the dog. It was just like a drawing he had done a few months ago. It was masterfully done and the detail was incredible. “It's…how did you...”

“Miss Ellaria showed me your artwork when I was trying to start the club, and even let me keep one of the drawings,” she said, explaining how she knew about the imagery. “I know, you're not much of a jewelry guy, but I was thinking, even if you don't wear it, you could still hang it on your rear view mirror, for good luck or something. I got my sister's ex to make it for me. They broke up on relatively good terms… Anyway, he's an apprentice to a jeweler that's highly rated in King’s Landing.”

“It shows. It's beautiful. Thank you.” He kissed her. It was rare that he allowed himself to kiss her on the mouth without her prompting, usually limiting himself to her cheek or forehead, but tonight was special. Tonight it was easier to pretend this was all real, that he wasn't a practice dummy, that she loved him as more than her best friend, that maybe someday, Rickon could be his little brother. He wanted to tell her those three little words, but he didn't. _Soon, she'll want to stop so she can be with Harry. She'll still be my best friend after that. She's not like them. She could never be, she's good and pure of heart. She'll stay by my side, as friends. I know she will. Until then, I'll keep my secret and take everything she is willing to give me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 8am and 10am.
> 
> I used [this](http://dailyau.tumblr.com/post/153483010089/i-got-stuck-babysitting-my-little-sibling-so) prompt for this chapter. I got a bit stuck, but @DailyAu was super helpful. :D


	18. Stage Malfunctions

“So you're joining the production team of the school play instead of trying for a club?” Brienne asked.

“Yeah, I mean, it would be nice to join a club, but if I join the stage crew, I can be a part of wardrobe and that sounds fun. And it will be a nice creative outlet. Miss Ellaria suggested it, since she and Shae are co-directors.” She and Brienne were watching the setup of the mathletes competition. Jaime was backstage with the team, giving them a pep talk that only half of them wanted, and would join them as soon as he was done. _Or as soon as Sandor loses his patience,_ she thought with a smile. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“Still haven't started yet?” Ms. Tarbeck asked as she sat next to Sansa. Alayna and Arya were most likely sitting in the back of the nearly empty auditorium. Brienne and Alayna were still at odds over the poaching of Arya to the archery team.

“No, they seem to be running behind,” she told her. “The stage wasn't even set when we got here.”

“So whose ass is my baby boy going to kick today?” Ms. Tarbeck asked.

Sansa and Brienne laughed. “A team from Oldtown University,” Sansa said. “Varys called in a favor and got this match made. If Sandor can beat them, it'll look really good on his application for both the scholarship and to OU.”

Varys had been enthusiastically helping Sandor achieve the requirements for the academic scholarship he needed, if only because it boosted the mathletes to a higher status and more school funds. The application was due next week, so winning this one would most likely be the final piece he needed. Not that he was going to stop after this. He practically glowed after the mathletes meetings, and Sansa loved that he loved it so much. Her only regret was that she couldn’t understand any of it, and could only listen, smile and nod when they went out with the team after meets. At least she had Shae, who went to support Tyrion and didn’t understand it much either. Shae had her own way of pepping Tyrion up, that was best done in the privacy of a broom closet backstage. Brienne had just rolled her eyes on that one, and said that that was Shae’s solution to everything. Sansa had been tempted to try that for Sandor, but while Tyrion did best when he was relaxed, Sandor did his best when he was slightly pressured. Every problem he got right earned him a point, and they had worked out a reward system for the points. He was aiming for the highest one, taking Sansa to the amusement part in King’s Landing when it opened for the summer, making her ride the largest roller coaster in all of Westeros and then buying the novelty photo they sell at the end of the ride. She had specifically made that one worth the most points because she didn’t want him to get it.

The audience didn’t grow much, even when the two teams took the stage. Sansa had no idea what was going on. Brienne was a much better student than her and _she_ didn’t know what was going on. Jaime had some idea, but was threatened with being removed by bodily force by Sandor if he didn’t “shut the fucking hells up” when he cheered too loudly.

“So how come you didn’t join the mathletes?” Sansa asked Jaime during the intermission. Brienne had gone to get refreshments from the vending machine and it occurred to Sansa that Jaime was smart enough to do it, since he and Sandor had the same trig class.

Jaime shrugged. “I’m not as good at it as Sandor or Tyrion, and I’m _definitely_ not as passionate about it. I’d rather spend my time focusing on my athletic ability, but I do help Tyrion drill for these things at home, since Dad doesn’t bother with anything other that knowing if we’re doing well or not. Also, Varys gives me the heebie-jeebies. I mean, seriously, how the hell did he even manage to pull off this match? He’s got to be blackmailing _someone.”_

The match ended with Kingswood High in the lead by five points, which Sansa understood was extremely good, since they were up against the best of the best from Oldtown University. _Fifty-seven more points…_ she thought, as she looked at the tally she was keeping for Sandor’s points, worried that she really would have to go on the roller coaster. _Oh, geez..._

**********

The month went by quickly in Sandor’s opinion. Sansa was busy with play rehearsals, but he made a point of waiting to take her home, since the rehearsals were so long and it was usually dark by the time she got out. Plus, she liked to snuggle with him after being surrounded by a bunch of people she didn’t know very well.

“I hate that I have such a hard time talking to people,” she said.

“Isn’t your brother in it? Uh… Theon?”

She rolled her eyes. “He is, but he’s too wrapped up in himself and flirting with all the pretty girls in the cast and crew. And some of the guys… I had no idea he was into guys, to be honest. Still can’t believe he got the main lead. He’s crap-tastic at acting! It hurts to hear him speak, I swear to it.”

“What about the other wardrobe people? Surely you can find something to talk about with them?”

She hummed, deep in thought. “Jeyne seems nice, but she’s just as quiet as me. We talk a little bit. She’s got a crush on one of the guys from the football team, so she’s trying to get him to notice her. What’s his name… Beral? Bernard? Ber-something.”

“Beric Dondarrion. Good guy. Gay as all hells. Got a weird fetish for short psychopaths. Might want to let her know that. He’s in the play?”

“Yeah, several of the football guys are. They seem really nice. They’re always running around to help me and Jeyne. Apparently, they know my connection to you,” she said, looking up at him and smiling. “They said they miss hanging out with you. You could come sit in the auditorium when you wait for me, maybe see them?”

“Ah, yeah… might do that. None of our schedules really coincide anymore. I sometimes hang out with Beric and Tormund, since Beric’s such a mom and Tormund follows him like a duckling. Usually when you or Brienne are busy. Jaime sometimes tags along. Ah, but they’re not dating, they’re just… Beric and Tormund. Beric’s boyfriend is Ramsay Bolton. I don’t think Tor is seeing anyone right now. He also has a fetish for short psychos, but of the female variety.”

“Ramsay… Oohhhh, I know him. He’s…a bit scary, to be honest. But he makes these _amazing_ box lunches for Beric. Scary box lunches, but _amazing._ I kind of want to talk to him, just to ask about his recipes…” She looked so serious, he had to laugh.

“Well, if you do, make sure you’re with Beric or me. He can be a handful, but one quick smack to the back of his head settles him down.”

^v^v^v^v^

Sometimes he got there before they were done, so he took Sansa’s suggestion and would hang out in the back of the auditorium quietly with the other people waiting. A few times, Ramsay shoved some papers at him without a word, and then stomped off as only Ramsay could. They were recipes, which Sansa squealed over. Apparently, Ramsay had appreciated the balls it took to talk to him in the first place, and written out some of the recipes he thought she might like. _Sansa and Ramsay, friends? Well, she does have ME as a best friend…_

“I wouldn’t call us _friends,_ per se…” she said later when he mentioned it. “More like… people with common interests who now share a Pinterest board? We don’t really _talk_ talk, not like you and me. Heck, not even like me and Jeyne. By the way, she’s no longer crushing on Beric. Now it’s Theon, so she’s been much more chatty towards me.”

^v^v^v^v^

He picked her up for the opening night. Her parents were going to be there, but not until later, and Robb had the other car. She had several bags with her, mostly supplies for last minute emergencies that might come up. They were a few blocks away from school, she was talking animatedly about how Theon had finally noticed Jeyne, when she froze. “Omigods…” she whispered.

“What’s wrong?”

“I have to go back home,” she said, not moving.

“What? Why? We’re nearly there--”

“Sandor, I _need_ to go back home.”

He pulled the car over. “Tell me why, or I’m not moving this thing.”

She bit her lip, and a moment passed. Then another. And another. He was starting to get concerned when she finally said, “My… My period… It just started. Like, _right now._ I need to get home, so I can get… supplies.”

“Supplies?”

She gave him a pained look. “Please don’t make me say it.”

He tried to remember what Alayna complained about whenever she got her period. It was always a rather unpleasant time, what with all the cussing and punching, that he’d rather never think about again, but he finally remembered. “Like pads and tampons?”

“And you said it instead.” She leaned forward and rested her head on the dashboard of the car. “Gods… I’m so embarrassed.”

“Why? My sister goes through the same thing. More violently, I might add. And I regularly go down on you as well as put my cock inside of you. If anyone should be embarrassed, it should be me. I never even thought about that, and probably should have kept some emergency supplies in the car for you.” He sat back and ran his hand through his hair. “I think there’s a small bodega up ahead. They probably have what you need. Is there anything else?”

She looked up at him, grateful. “No, not really. I have some clothes I can change into, if I… um… if I stained what I’m wearing. Maybe some paper towels, in case it got on the car seat?”

“Nah. Not like this car hasn’t seen blood before. I used to be in football, remember? And hockey for a season.”

She paled, but he had the feeling it was more for the blood he had spilled from his sports days, rather than the blood she may or may not have been currently spilling. He put the car back into drive and soon was parking in front of the store, asking her for specifics on what he needed to get for her. She protested that she could do it herself, but then doubled over in pain from a cramp.

Sandor walked briskly into the place. _Fuck, what kind did she say again? Always brand? Opal...no... Pearl? Shit… What the hell is light, regular, heavy and ultra about? Fuck it._ He grabbed boxes, one of each for the tampons and then a package of each color available for the pads, and walked up to the cash register. He added in three deals of chocolate candy, since he remembered Alayna saying it helped, and some pain reliever.

“Being nice to your sister?” the cashier sniggered.

Sandor glared at him. “No.” The cashier, a punk with green and yellow hair, a nose ring, and one of the most stereotypical tribal tattoos he had ever seen, was staring at him, trying to figure it out.

“Girlfriend then?” he asked dubiously. “Wait, so you’re not embarrassed to be seen buying tampons and crap for your girlfriend?” the cashier asked, eyeing the amount of stuff Sandor had just plunked down in front of him.

He didn’t feel like explaining to a total stranger he’d likely never see again that _it wasn’t like that,_ so he just said, “I’m man enough to do just about anything for her. You going to ring it up or do I get free stuff? Because I am walking out that door with all of this one way or another.”

He would freely admit that the entire thing was embarrassing, but it was worth the embarrassment for the grateful look Sansa gave him. She laughed when she saw the amount of stuff he had bought, and picked out what she would need. Once they got to the theater, she disappeared with her bags, but texted him that she was fine now, and she would see him after the play, and reminding him that her parents were expecting him to save them seats. He had actually forgotten, and ran into the auditorium to find enough seats for the Stark horde.

 ^v^v^v^v^

The play was great, if a little confusing. He understood the plot well enough, and the rest of the crowd was enthralled, so he didn’t question some of the plot holes he had noticed. Sansa was elated when she finally got out of the auditorium and met up with him and her family. Theon was crowing about how great he was, but Arya shot him down real quick.

“Dude, you kept looking at your hand, and you made several noticeable mistakes. Did you boink the director to get cast as the lead?”

“Arya!” Mr. and Mrs. Stark said in synchronicity.

“Jokes on you, it was the assistant director who was in charge of casting.”

“So you slept with Shae?” Arya pressed. Mr. and Mrs. Stark yelled at her again.

“Uh...the assistant director is Olyvar,” Sansa pointed out. “Shae was the director’s assistant. Two different jobs.”

“Olyvar, the incredibly flaming gay boy?” Arya asked. There were frustrated mumbles from the Stark parents.

“He’s very understanding of my passion to act,” Theon said, but he had a nervous tic under his eye.

”Ohmygods, you little slut, you totally slept with him!” Arya said gleefully.

Theon looked like he was about to murder Arya, even if she probably was right, but Mr. Stark grabbed Theon by the ear, while Mrs. Stark did the same to Arya, and marched them out of the auditorium.

“Well, I guess that’s that,” Sansa said, as the other Starks followed them. “Wanna go grab a pizza with the cast and crew? Beric’s bringing Ramsay, and I’m sure he’d like to hang out some more. Plus Bronn, Lollys, Tormund, and Jon, possibly Sam...and Jaime invited himself, so Brienne will be there as well.”

“Yeah, sure. Let’s go.” He picked up her bags, slung his arm around her shoulders and they walked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be between 12pm (noon) and 2pm.
> 
> I used [this](http://dailyau.tumblr.com/post/153321324467/wait-so-youre-not-embarrassed-to-be-seen-buying) prompt to help me with this chapter. :)
> 
> Bonus question: What tattoos do I have? Two extra points for the first person who answers correctly.  
> Please post Bonus Question Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled.  
> EDIT: Az and Sassyeggs each got half the answer, so... 1 point for each of you! :) The answer is Hound tattoo, and a dragon tattoo. :D His name is Takashi. Yes, I named my dragon. He is blue, Western style dragon and has a crystal. He is AWESOME.


	19. Shift Into Turbo

“Are you sure about this?” she asked. She was sitting behind the wheel of his car, nervously looking at all the pedals and whatnot. They were currently parked in middle of the parking lot of the school stadium, with the engine off. It was not how she had originally planned to spend a Sunday morning, but Sandor had promised donuts.  _ If _ she gave it a shot.

“I'm sure. If you don't want to… you don't have to.”

She looked down at the gear shift. The  _ manual _ gear shift. Sansa knew how to drive, but when Sandor found out she couldn't drive stick, he offered to teach her. She thought it was a sexual thing at first. Sandor had laughed much harder than necessary, in her opinion. Once she figured it all out, it had sounded interesting, but now she was just plain nervous.

“No...I should. It would be good. In case… In case I ever need to drive your car?” she asked. He grinned at her and nodded.

“Ok, so, basically, the clutch, that’s the small pedal on the left, needs to be pressed all the way down to the floor whenever you shift gears, when you start the car, when you brake, pretty much everything. You always start in neutral,” he pointed to the gear shift, which she could see was in the middle of all the open paths, “and when you want to start moving, you’ll shift to first. As you speed up, you’ll shift to second, then third, fourth, and finally fifth, if you need to. Depends on how fast you’re going. The key is to  _ listen _ to the car, ok? He’ll speak to you.”

“He? I thought cars were all female?”

“Depends on the driver.  _ His _ name is Stranger. Blasphemous, I know, but what else would you name a nineteen-sixty-seven black Impala? It looks and sounds like death incarnate.” He looked way too happy about that and she giggled.

“You  _ named _ him?”

“Of course. Wouldn’t you name your car?”

She tilted her head back. Someday, she wanted to get a car all of her own, and not have to wait for her brothers to be done with their shared car, which they never were. It would be a sleek little hatchback, light silver in color.  _ I would name her… Lady. _ She turned back to Sandor and shrugged. “Probably.”

He chuckled. “Alright. Back to driving Stranger. He’s a bit… temperamental. But if you’re patient and kind with him, he’ll reward you for it, even if he bucks a bit at first. We’re going to go slow. I want you to turn the car on, take off the parking brake, then shift from neutral to first. Move forward a few feet, then shift back to neutral and brake. I want you to do this a few times before we move on to second gear, get it?”

“Got it.”

“Good. Now, begin.”

**********

“Breathe, little bird, breathe. Big breath in,” he said. She sucked in a ragged breath. “Hold it for one riverlands, two riverlands, three riverlands, and let it out slowly.” She let it out a little faster than he would have liked, but he didn’t comment. “Ok, keep doing that and I will be right back.”

He slid halfway out the window and yelled at the driver behind them who hadn’t stopped honking.  _ “Fuck off, you shitfaced whoreson! There is a FUCKING sign on the FUCKING car that tells you a STUDENT driver is learning to drive FUCKING stick shift! Have some FUCKING patience and GO THE FUCK AROUND US!” _ He waited until car had completely passed them, flipping the bird  _ back _ to the old biddy behind the wheel, before sliding back into his seat. “Sorry about that. How you doing?” he asked Sansa softly. 

She had done so well in the parking lot, he asked her if she’d like to drive the streets around the stadium. She was feeling confident, and it  _ should _ have been a breeze. It was, until she got to the second stop sign. The car stalled out, and he saw her tense, but she tried again. It took six tries, a bit of crying with a dash of anxiety, and a shaky follow through, but she made it past there. The third stop sign was worse. Eleven tries, she hyperventilated, and was sobbing. He tried to calm her down, talk her through it, then the fuckwad behind them had started in with her horn. 

“I’m… I’m ok… I think. What am I doing wrong?” she whispered. Tears were still rolling down her cheeks, but slower and she had stopped the sobbing and hyperventilating. Mostly.

“I know it’s not your shifting, and you’re doing ok with the gas pedal. Do it one more time, ok? I’ll be watching to see if I figure it out.” She stalled out again, but he managed to spot the problem. “You’re letting out the clutch too quickly. Can’t believe I missed that before. Ok, so try again, this time, let out the clutch as slowly as possible, and give him the gas if you feel him tremble. Stranger is a strong car, and can take more abuse than you’re dishing out, so don’t be afraid to be a little aggressive with him.” 

She gave him a dubious look, but did as he said. She drove them relatively smoothly through the intersection. “Wha-- But I-- I did it?”

“Yep. You did. If you want to keep going--”

“NO!”

He laughed. “Ok, ok, just turn back into the parking lot. It’s a bit late for donuts now, but I’ll drive us over to the movie theatre. You can pick the movie, and I’ll pay for both tickets and snacks. How’s that sound?”

“Really?” She wiped her face with the back of her hand. He dug around the glovebox until he found a cleanish handkerchief to give her.

“Yeah, really. You did well, considering, and you didn’t grind the gears at all. We can work on going from a full stop to first gear another time, since that seems to be your major area of difficulty, but once you get it, you’ll never forget how to do it. It just takes time.” He gave her a small, encouraging smile. “I’m proud of you, little bird.”

She unbuckled her seatbelt and crawled onto his lap, straddling him as she hugged him. She didn’t say anything, but they stayed there, embracing, until she was ready to get going.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 6pm and 8pm.
> 
> Please post Bonus Question Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled.
> 
> Bonus question: What live action tv show does the chapter title come from? Two extra points for the first person who gives the correct answer. **Lalelilolu got the answer with Power Rangers Turbo!**
> 
> Alternate bonus question: (You cannot earn points on this one if you get points on the question above.) What is the name of the car Sandor's Stranger is modeled after? **Zip got the answer with "Baby", from Supernatural.**


	20. Dance The Night Away

“What do you mean you can't dance?” she asked.

Sandor rolled his eyes and lolled his head back, not wanting to answer. They were at the bowling alley, practicing for the annual Clash of Kings bowling tournament that was happening a week after graduation. Bronn was on his way to a perfect game and Jaime had yet to hit any pins. Tyrion was “managing” while Shae worked the snack bar, meaning he was just sitting at the console and looking back at his girlfriend to eyefuck her whenever he could. Lollys was sitting at the counter, keeping Shae company and eating French fries. Brienne was running late, and would bowl a second game with them. Beric was matching Bronn’s score and the two were bickering over who was more likely to win. Well, Bronn was bickering. Beric was calmly arguing. Ramsay had talked to Sansa for a bit, exchanged notes on what Sandor could only assume was recipes, then slapped Beric’s ass and flipped the rest of them off before heading over to the small arcade in the corner of the bowling ally.

“He means he's never gone to a dance, and so has never tried, and therefore believes he is incapable of dancing,” Tyrion said. “But he's got good moves, nimble feet, so I don't see why he couldn't learn.”

Sansa giggled as Sandor threw an empty soda cup at Tyrion’s head, who ducked and ran off to join Shae. “Fucking imp,” he growled.

Sansa got on her knees on the chair, wrapped her arm around his shoulders and rested her chin near his bad ear. She knew he hated his scars, but he was also secretly pleased when she showed that they didn't bother her. And they didn't, not anymore, not in a very long time. “I could help you. I love dancing,” she whispered.

“Of course you do,” he said, grinning. “Little birds love singing and dancing.” She stuck her tongue out at him, which earned her more grins. “I would appreciate dance lessons. Don't want to look like a fool in front of half the school.”

The thought of having him all to herself for dance lessons made a warmth pool in her belly. “And it's more time for us to maybe...” she whispered, “do some other things as well?” Alone time was becoming harder and harder to come by with finals coming up and teachers piling on the assignments. If their parents thought they were doing dancing lessons though...

“Other things?”

“Things involving your hips moving in rhythm to mine?” The look on his face was priceless, going from confusion, to realization, to embarrassment, to eagerness.

“If that's what you want, I'm good with that.” He couldn't stop grinning and she couldn't either. _We must look like mad fools in love._ But that didn't bother her one bit.

“Ok,” she said, letting go of him so he could take his turn. “Tomorrow?”

“What's tomorrow?” Jaime asked. He had almost gotten one pin, but the ball had only grazed it, making it wobble in place before staying up.

“Oh, I'm going to show Sandor how to dance. So he can feel more comfortable at prom.”

“Oh! I want to learn, too!” Jaime exclaimed and Sandor nearly dropped his ball on his foot.

“Fuck. NO.”

“But…” Jaime began to plead, but Sandor cut him off.

“No. Absolutely not. You are _not_ cutting into my time with Sansa,” he growled. She giggled. He didn’t get possessive of her often, but it was usually amusing when he did. She hated to admit it, but she kind of liked it.

“But…”

“Jaime, I’ll teach you to dance,” Brienne said, throwing her arm around her boyfriend.

“Wench! You made it! Was starting to think you got stolen by a wildling. You know how to dance?”

She sighed. “Yeah, Dad insisted. Said it would improve my footwork for fencing. He was right, but I hated dressing up in those _stupid_ dresses.”

“What about prom? You said you were ready for it,” Jaime asked.

“I am,” was all she said, winking at Jaime.

Sansa shared a secret smile with the tall blonde. Brienne was going to look fantastic for prom. It was the Sanctuary guarantee.

**********

Sandor wasn’t sure what felt better, learning to dance with Sansa, or fucking her. In either instance, he was just happy to have her in his arms, her soft, supple body pressed against his hard, muscular one. Dancing with her was heaven, golden even, once he stopped stepping on her toes. Fucking her was electric, and he felt a stab of pride whenever she climaxed, because _he_ had given this goddess pleasure, and fuck, did he work hard to make sure she did. He felt a twinge of guilt, since he was actively working to become the standard she held future sex partners to, though he tried not to think about those nameless and undoubtedly more handsome guys. He concentrated on how lucky he was that she allowed him the privilege of being her fuck buddy, how she said his name with a breathy whisper, and on how beautiful she was when she came. He used the excuse of quieting her moans to kiss her a lot, and he wasn’t ashamed of that fact one bit.

After their tutoring sessions came the dancing lessons, and then sex, which Sandor realized was kind of like a dance on its own. Sansa had giggled when he mentioned it and told him about a Dornish style of dancing called the tango, which was a very intimate dance, and practically having sex on the dance floor.

He was getting ready to go to the store when his phone buzzed. He was running low on condoms and it wasn’t fair to Sansa that she had to suffer the shame of buying them when he was the one that wore them. She had said she didn’t mind, but damnit, he did. She was a lady, she shouldn’t have to buy condoms when his lower class ass could do it instead.

**Dany: Hey. busy?**

**SC: Nah, what’s up?**

**Dany: need favor.**

**SC: does this involve Drogo?**

**Dany: >:(**

**YES. M angry w/him. Take me to prom. Will pay for your tux.**

**SC: Already got an outfit. Suit, not tux. Better than a tux, actually.**

**Dany: you have date??!! :D :D :D**

**SC: no**

**Dany: ??????**

**SC: *sigh***

**there’s a girl… i like her. but we’re just friends. she’ll be there, and she helped me with the outfit.**

**Dany: SHE LOVES YOU. *_____* I LOVE IT. AND HER. SHE IS AWESOME. I SHIP IT.**

**SC: damnit, Dany… NO. IT'S NOT LIKE THAT. WE’RE JUST FRIENDS. don’t make this weird.**

**Dany: fine. >:( so u can be my date then? walk in with two awesum girls on ur arm. u will be KING. give me her #. **

**we cna coordinate outfits. be ur fuckable arm candies. ur such a pimp!**

**SC: …**

**Dany: :D :D :D**

He clenched his jaw. _Sansa’s going with Harry. I can’t show up alone… even if I’d rather just do that. And Dany’s cool. Not like Sansa would care who I bring, so long as it’s not someone who would be a bitch. Well, Dany can be a bitch, but she’s generally a sweetheart. More or less…_

**SC: fine, i’ll take you as my date, but leave her alone, ok? WE’RE JUST FRIENDS.**

**Dany: wutevr u say :D :3 let me know if you need winggirl with her!**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 11am and 1pm.
> 
> Oh, Sandor...you sweet summer child... At least Dany ships it... *sigh*


	21. FUBAR

Sansa closed her locker door and was startled to see Harrold on the other side. "Prom is just around the corner, beautiful," he said with an easy smile. "What do you say? You and me? I got a reservation for a room at the hotel for an after party..."

Sansa gave him a flat smile. "Thank you, but no," she said. "I already have a date."

Harrold faltered. "But...I'm Harrold 'Hard Cock' Hardyng...best ride in town..."

She had literally never heard anyone refer to him as such, but then again, she didn't exactly talk to a lot of people that thought nicely of him. "Then I'm sure you'll be able to find a date in no time. Or you know, take one or all of your girlfriends. I'm sure they'd _love_ that." She neither knew nor cared if that was true and walked away. She needed to go home to pick up something special before her tutoring session with Sandor.

^v^v^v^v^

“You’re here early. Thankfully, I already finished filling out the last of my scholarship paperwork. As soon as they receive them, I’m golden,” Sandor said, smiling at her as he opened the door to his house. Of course she was early, the silly boy, Junior/Senior prom was two weeks away! They needed to talk about their plans for that night. She refused to wait until the day before to talk about it. A crack of thunder startled her, and she hurried inside, handing him the garment bag containing the freshly pressed suit she had made him. He had _finally_ consented to the final fitting the previous week and it was ready for him to wear.

“I’m just excited about prom. You said you wanted to finalize plans and whatnot.” She put her bag on the back of her chair. “So let’s talk. What have you got in mind?”

“Yeah, a friend of mine, Daenerys, she--”

“Daenerys Targaryen?” _No...that’s impossible… Not him, too._

“You know her?”

“She’s possibly the most famous teenager in all of Westeros,” Sansa said with a laugh that may have been a little too high pitched. “How could I not know of her?” She tried to calm her nerves, but her heart was beating so loudly, there was no way he couldn't hear it. _Breathe, Sansa, just breathe..._

“Ah, true. I know her personally. She used to go to Kingswood High, transferred to King’s Landing at the beginning of the last school year. Her boyfriend, Drogo, still goes to Kingswood, but they’ve got this really complicated relationship. Anyway, long story short, she’s my date to prom, but only in name. It’s not a real date.”

“You're… you're taking Daenerys Targaryen to prom? As her date?” She was sure she had misheard. _She_ was his girlfriend. He should be taking _her,_ shouldn't he? He hadn't asked her, but she had mentioned wanting to go with him the morning after they first had sex. _He said he would go… he forgot? He forgot about me for Daenerys? No...not him, Sandor wouldn’t--_

“Yeah, but, like I said, it’s not a _real_ date, we're just going as friends. She's trying to make Drogo jealous for some reason. Who knows with them?” He shrugged. His back was to her as he got the study snacks ready. “It’s not like it’s going to work, and she’s willing to pay for a lot of the expenses. Dany wants to rent a limo, and if you’re interested, she said you’re welcome to join us, if you need a ride. You'll be there with Harry, right? So it won't be a total drag. And I guess it would be alright if he came along, too, in the limo, I mean.”

“Harry? Harrold Hardyng?” _Look at me. Why won't you look at me? Why would I go with Harrold? He's not my boyfriend, you ar--_

“He asked you, didn't he? He's the reason you've been using me as a practice dummy.”

Her blood went cold. _Practice dummy? He thinks… he thinks I was using him? Why would he think that?? But… if he thinks he was a practice dummy, then… it wasn't real? All those moments together… I wasn't faking them! I thought we were… We're not dating? We're not… he doesn't see me as his girlfriend… he doesn't... see me... doesn't see me... I'm… What am I? His fuck buddy? His friend...his BEST friend...who trusts him with so much, why wouldn't she trust him with “practicing”? He was just being nice?? Just being a good friend?! He doesn't see me...at all... I can't breathe..._ She felt like she had been punched in the gut. So much made sense now. Why he was so distant and awkward with affection. Why he almost never initiated anything. It had been her who did that, it had _always_ been her. She blinked back the tears as she felt her heart being ripped to pieces. “Um… I need to go.”

“What?” He finally looked at her and she wished he wouldn't. “But you just got here. And your tutoring--”

“I'm feeling sick.” That was the truth. She thought she might vomit. “I don't want you to catch anything.”

“Well, let me walk you home--”

“NO!" she yelled, and he took a step back. "I mean...I'll be fine. I don't want to throw up on you, or for you to see me throw up… I'll be fine. I just really need to be alone right now.”

“Well, ok… if you’re sure about it... Text me when you get home, so I know you're alright.” He looked really concerned, and that twisted her gut a little more.

“Yeah, sure,” she said as she walked back out the door. She wasn't sure what she would prefer: Him caring about her but not loving her, or him pretending to care. _Joffrey pretended to care. But my feelings for Sandor are so much deeper than what I felt for Joffrey… This is so much worse._

She walked home a lot slower than normal, even stopping at the small park where she had first kissed him. “On this swing, I first decided to give him my heart,” she whispered to herself, allowing the tears to finally fall. She sat down, pushing herself a little in the swing, leaning her forehead on the cold, iron chains that held it up. The rusty, metallic scent was bitter to her nose, yet somewhat comforting as well. “Such hope I had, such potential for the future. Gods, I sound like an emo…”

Her phone beeped.

**Sandorfus: You get home ok?**

She sniffed back the snot in a very unladylike manner and debated on ignoring the message, but he might go to her house to check on her. He really was a good friend.

**SS: Yeah.**

**Sandorfus: You ok?**

**SS: I’ll be fine.**

**Sandorfus: Wanna talk about it? Or keep talking about prom plans? Can’t get sick over text :)**

**SS: Not right now. Going to sleep it off.  
**

**Sandorfus: Oh ok. Sleep well then**

She wouldn’t be fine. Not anytime soon anyway. Maybe eventually, but her heart was broken. Her first _real_ love, nothing like what she had felt for Joffrey, shattered by her own stupidity. _How could I ever think he could love me. Stupid girl. Stupid, stupid girl. Nothing but a pretty face and not much underneath that. San-stupid is right... How can I possibly compare to Daenerys Targaryen? _ She had tried before, and that hadn’t worked out very well.

“Well, what do we have here?” an unwelcome voice said behind her. She winced and turned around to see Eliza. “Where’s your boyfriend? Or do I get to finally pummel you?”

“Sandor’s… he’s not my boyfriend.” She got up from the swing, shoving her phone into her pocket with one hand and wiping the evidence of her tears away with the other, just as the rain began to fall in heavy drops.  _Perfect. Why not?_ She would be soaked by the time she got home. “I’ll leave.”

She took a few steps and then found herself being shoved to the ground. “Did I say you could leave?”

She felt so tired as she tried to get up. “Eliza...please. I just want to go home.”

“I don’t give a fuck. I owe you a lot of pain, little girl. My brother and sister aren’t here to protect you. _Your_ sister isn’t here to protect you. I want to hear you scream.”

_I want to hear your scream._ She could practically hear Joffrey’s cackle. “No.”

“Scream,” Eliza said, flipping Sansa over and sitting on her stomach. She held a death grip on Sansa’s shirt, pulling her up a little off the ground. The rain was falling harder now. “Scream.”

“No.” Her voice felt a little stronger.  _I am not that same weakling... I learned to drive manual, tried to create a club, joined the school play, talked to one of the scariest guys in school and got his recipe for the most delicious fried rice I've ever eaten AND was able to duplicate it! I create clothing that make people feel beautiful no matter what! I. Am. NOT. WEAK!!_ Her hands were free. _What did Arya say? Don’t look, it’ll just bring their attention to where you don’t want it. Feel, see if you can find something, anything, even dirt that you can throw in your opponent's eyes. Just_ _something_ _to give you an advantage._

Eliza slammed the back of Sansa’s head into the ground. Pain, so much pain, and stars were bursting in front of her eyes.  _Ow..._ Still, her hands searched through the thin layer of mud that had formed on the ground. “Scream.”

_“No.”_ A little stronger still, even if her vision was a bit wonky. The rain was coming straight down on her face, which wasn’t helping at all.

Sansa found something. “I said scre--” She brought a rock up and hit Eliza in the temple. The girl fell to the side, and Sansa was able to scramble out from under her, getting to her feet.

_“Why?! What did I ever do to you?!”_ Sansa screamed. A flash of lightning was soon followed by a crack of thunder. “I just wanted to be left in peace! I was _fine_ being alone! I wasn’t hurting anyone!” she sobbed. “Now what do I have? Broken dreams, a broken heart… You want to beat me up? Fine! Do it! Beat me bloody and break all my bones. But I refuse to scream! I refuse to be scared of you!” Tears ran down her face, hidden by the rain.

Eliza held her head as she sat up from the ground. Sansa saw blood dripping down the side of her face, mixing with the rain and the mud from the rock. She looked up at Sansa, shock and confusion in her eyes.

Sansa tossed the rock away. “I’m going _home,_ Eliza. I’m tired... and I just want to sleep for a million years. If you want to beat me up, fine. Do it tomorrow. Otherwise, please just leave me alone, and I will leave you alone.” She turned around and walked towards her house. She half expected Eliza to attack her from behind again, but she reached home, soaked to the bone but without further injury.

The next morning, she woke to a burning fever, a sore throat and a massive headache.

**********

Sandor looked at his phone for the umpteenth time that Monday. It was eerily silent. He hadn’t heard from Sansa in two days, not since Friday evening, and he hadn’t liked how their last conversation had ended so abruptly. He was kicking himself for not going by her house earlier, but he thought he must have forgotten some family thing and she was busy with that, yet she hadn’t been at school either. _If she hasn’t answered by the time school lets out, I’ll go to her house._

^v^v^v^v^

He found himself in front of the Stark house, knocking loudly on the large front door. Mr. Stark answered it. “Sandor! What are you doing here?”

“Sir, I came to check on Sansa. She hasn't responded to my texts or calls, and she left her backpack at my house.” He handed it over to Mr. Stark.

“Ah, yes. I guess she hasn’t really been up to communicating, even by texts. She caught a vicious cold the other night, coming home in the rain.”

_Rain? She should have been home before the rain started…_

“She’s been delirious, high fever, going back and forth between freezing cold and sweating. Catelyn is refusing to let anyone else near her, just so it doesn’t spread to the rest of the family. I’d let you see her, except for that.”

“Right...of course. I’ll… Could you let her know I came by? Ask her to text me when she feels well enough?”

“Of course.”

Sandor bid the man goodbye, and walked back to his house, an uneasy feeling settling in his stomach. His life went back to how it had been before Sansa, hanging out with Bronn, Jaime, and Brienne, and now some of the guys from the football team, class, hanging out with his friends, homework, working on his math workbooks, doing yard work for his regular clients, and sleeping. It was hell, a very empty hell. He thought he would be able to move on once Sansa started dating Harry, but if it was like this when she was just recovering from illness, how would it be when he saw her around school, hanging onto Harry’s arm? The days passed excruciatingly slow.

No one was able to get a hold of Sansa at all, and Arya had become oddly cold to him, not answering his questions when he saw her at school. She only told him, and everyone else, that Sansa was not well, but would come back to school once she was.

^v^v^v^v^

“She’s still not up to seeing anyone,” Mrs. Stark told him when he went to the Stark house after school on Friday. “The only person she lets in her room besides me is her sister.”

“Oh, ok… Can you tell her I stopped by? I have something for her,” he said, holding out a brown paper bag. He had gone to the fabric store and found a particular red metallic thread she had wanted, but they were out the last time she had gone. He had also seen some fabric he thought she might like. It was a medium grey, with little black dogs and red birds running all over it, reminiscent of the pendent she had given him and that he wore under his shirt every day. He could almost see it as a dress she would wear, something simple and cute. _Fuck, I miss her…_

“Of course, Sandor. I’m sure this will cheer her right up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the shit has not just hit the fan, it has demolished it. *sigh*  
> 1) Please don't kill me.   
> 2) Please hold out until the end, there are only 6 chapters left.
> 
> Tomorrow's chapter will update between 8am and 10am.


	22. I Don’t Want To Go

“You should go to school today. You don’t have any reason to stay home anymore,” Arya said, swinging her legs off the side of Sansa’s bed.

“You know I do.” She stared at the gift bag Sandor had left with her mother. She hadn't touched it since seeing what he had gotten her. It felt like a mockery of her pain. _But he doesn't know. And he never can know._

“Fine, you don’t have any reason that the school will _accept_ for you to stay home anymore.”

Arya had found Sansa collapsed on the floor of her room when she came home that night after Sandor told her he was taking Daenerys to prom. She told Arya everything, about the kissing, the intimacy, and how it had meant nothing after all, though she had thankfully not mentioned the sex part. She had made Arya promise to not hurt Sandor. It wasn’t his fault, it was hers for thinking something that was completely different from reality.

“I… I just feel so foolish, how can I face him?”

Arya sighed. “Look, this is one of those times in life that Mom and Dad keep telling us about, the kind where we have to suck it up and deal with crap in order to move forward. So go to school, and just deal with it. If he seeks you out, don’t let him see your pain, don’t let him know you’re hurting. He’s just going to want to do something to fix it, and that will make you feel worse.” She looked out the window, a faraway look in her eyes. “I really thought he was into you. Neither Alayna nor I would have encouraged you if we thought otherwise, I swear.”

“I know, it’s ok. She doesn’t know, right? I don’t want her feeling guilty. I wouldn’t have told you if you hadn’t found me when I was weak.”

“No, I haven’t told her, but she’s asking.”

Sansa just wanted it all to go away, but that wasn’t likely. “Ok, I’ll get dressed.”

“Yaaaaaaayyyy,” Arya said, cheerfully sarcastic in tone and clapping her hands together. “I’ll let Mom know.”

^v^v^v^v^

She felt so strange to be walking to school. Arya kept up a steady stream of conversation, which helped. Alayna jumped on her, hugging her fiercely. “I thought you might have died! Who's going to watch over my brother if you're gone?”

She smiled at Alayna but her heart wasn't in it. “He would be fine, I'm sure. Where is he, anyway?”

“Oh, running late. With prom this Saturday, and him being roped into helping by Jaime, he's been pretty busy. I'm so excited to see you two dance together. You've been practicing with him, right? Last thing you want is for his clumsy feet to smash your toes.”

Sansa paled a bit at the word “practicing”. She cleared her throat and glanced at Arya. “Alayna, about that…” _Better to be quick about it!_ “Sandor and I aren't going together.”

“What? Why not? Did he fart in your presence? Because I swear while stinky, he doesn't do it often, and opening a window is usually the best choice.” Arya snorted. “I said _usually!”_

“No, that's not… We're not dating. We never were. I was mistaken. He just sees me as a friend.”

Her face fell. “What?! No! He loves you! You are literally the best thing to ever happen to him and--”

Sansa hugged the girl. “He's the best thing to happen to me in a while, too, but the heart wants what it wants, and while he cares about me, he doesn't love me like _that.”_

“No… we were going to be sisters…” she said sadly. “I'll kill him.”

“Don't kill your brother,” Sansa admonished her. “He didn't know. It was me, all me.”

“But you love him, don't you?”

Sansa lowered her eyes. “You know I do.”

“Then, you should--”

“He's taking Daenerys Targaryen to prom. Not me. I don't think he even considered it…” She didn't mention that he thought she was going with Harrold of all people, or that she had asked Sandor and he had forgotten. _How did he even know Harrold asked me?_

“Daenerys Targaryen? The supermodel with the crazy has-been rockstar dad? He knows her? He chose _her_ over you?”

“Seems so.”

“I'm really going to kill him!” she seethed.

“Don't kill your brother,” Sansa repeated. “And don't talk to him about this either. It's just going to embarrass him and prevent me from ever returning to the friendship we had before…” _Before I fell in love with him._ “Before all this complicated stuff.”

Alayna huffed but agreed. “Fine. But I'm going to be mad at him for a while.”

“Please try to not be, at least. For me?”

Alayna grumbled a “maybe” before stalking off, taking Arya with her.

Sansa didn't see Sandor at all that day, though she _did_ make an effort to avoid him and anyone who might mention her presence to him, and debated on texting him as the final bell rang. She still wasn't up for hanging out with him, but it was weird enough that she hadn't contacted him while she was sick, wasn't it? _Just a quick text…after I return my library books._ She was halfway to the library when she heard his laugh. He was standing at his locker with Tormund, Bronn and Shae, Tyrion was most likely on his way. It hurt to see him, and that her first instinct was to run to him and hug and kiss him, tell him how much she missed him. _He doesn't love you like that. Stop being such an annoyance. I need some distance...and time... before I can approach him with a calm heart._ She turned away, taking the long route to the library and then walking towards the bus station that would take her downtown. Her phone beeped, but she didn't check it until she had paid her fare and was seated.

**Sandor: where'd you go? Shae said she saw you walking away? I haven't seen you in more than a week! I didn't even know you came back to school today.  
**

**SS: sorry, late to an appointment. Talk later?**

**Sandor: oh. of course. Might be a bit busy this week. Jaime has me running around to help deal with all these fucking people providing services for Saturday and then Dany is being a fucking pain in my fucking ass about prepping for fucking prom despite the fact that it's a fucking fake date**

She smiled despite her sadness. He tended to use the word "fuck" a lot more when he was frustrated. Daenerys must have been trying his patience.

**SS: I'm sure she just wants it to be perfect despite the fakeness. Be patient with her.**

**Sandor: you still need a ride? There's plenty of room in the limo.**

**SS: don't worry about me. My plans for prom night are rock solid**

**Sandor: are you ok? You seem… off.**

**SS: I'm fine. No worries.**  

**********

Sansa wasn't fine. _Something_ was wrong, but he had no idea what it was and she was refusing to talk to him, which wasn't like her. Even her text messages were lacking the usual warmth and laughter she somehow managed to get into them. _What the hell happened to her?_

His phone buzzed and he looked at it, hoping Sansa had changed her mind about not talking to him, only to be disappointed to see Dany’s name.

**Dany: drogo said nething yet?**

**SC: no. Did you tell him you were going with me?**

**Dany: no**

**SC: then why the fuck would he say anything. We don't hang out a lot anymore. I told you this. Are you sure this is what you want to do. Why don't you just talk to him**

**Dany: I can't just TALK 2 him. This is y u can't get a gf. U no nothing.**

**SC: you've been hanging out with that Ygritte again haven't you**

**Dany: :3 she gives good tongue :9 Drogo likes it when I kiss girls. makes him hot and bothered. so fierce in the sheets *___***

**Ygr's bf likes it too <3<3<3 they likes to watch sometimes**

**SC: tmi, dude**

**Dany: iz dat chick you <3 coming!? Have you sexied her yet!?!**

**SC: don't be a jerk. No, not coming with us, but she'll be there.**

**Dany: can't wait to meet her!!! Will have to apologize for stealing you :((((**

**SC: she's going with someone else**

**Dany: whhhaaaaaa!?!? But Tyrion said she luuuurrrrves u!!! :D that she's your giiiiiiiiiirrrrrllllfirend  
**

**SC: Tyrion talks too much. she's my best friend, and just that. Not my girlfriend. He's just mistaken**

**Dany: booooo. Did u evn ask her to prom????? or NEwhere?!?!  
**

**SC: no.**

**Dany: …**

**Ur n idiot**

**U should have said sum thing!!! NEthing!!!**

**SC: too late now. Just roll with it**

**Dany: this iz y u don't get laid**

Sandor snorted. _If only she knew._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 10am and 12pm (noon).
> 
> Bonus question: Who said the utterly heartbreaking quote that is the chapter title? Two extra points for the first person to say the correct answer.  
> Please post Bonus Question Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled.  
> Edit: I'm going to nix today's bonus points. Please do not confirm or deny someone else's answer, especially if it is an incomplete one. The answer is the 10th Doctor (right before he became the 11th).


	23. Keep The Old

Sansa wandered around downtown Kingswood for an hour before she came across the secondhand shop Brienne had mentioned, Melisandre’s Miscellaneous Market, or Triple M. The bell over the door jingled as she walked in. “Hello! Is there anything I can help you with?” a woman she assumed was Melisandre asked. 

“Hello… Are your items in order by size or by style?”

“Size, dear, but if there's anything you're looking for...?” She tilted her head quizzically, her long, bright red hair shifting. Sansa was a little jealous of how long and luxurious it was.  _ Daenerys has hair that long, too, doesn't she?” _

“Ah, no, nothing in particular.”

“Let me know if you need any help, I'll be at the register. Changing rooms are on the back wall if you find anything you want to try on.”

“Thank you,” she said, before beginning to browse. She found two dresses and a top, and slipped inside the changing room, just as the door jangled. Another customer had come in. 

Sansa hummed to herself as she tried on the first dress.  _ I wonder if Sand-- I guess it wouldn't matter if he thought I was pretty in it or not. _ She sighed, just as she heard the door jangle a third time, and then a crash, startling her.  

“What the hell kind of scam are you running here?!”

_ Eliza! _

Her voice sounded different to Sansa, and she peeked out from the changing room. Eliza was throwing items at the owner, tears streaming down her face, until the poor woman ran away to the back room and the other customer ran out the door. The older girl collapsed on the floor sobbing, her chest heaving from the strain and stress. Sansa knew she should stay hidden, but Eliza just sounded so... _ broken. _

She quietly walked up to her, knelt beside her and handed her a tissue from her purse. “Wanna talk about it?”

Eliza looked up, startled, then visibly relaxed. “Oh, it's just you…” She wiped her face with the back of her hand. 

Sansa rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, just me. But I'm serious. Do you want to talk about it?”

Eliza snorted, “Why? So you can go spread it around school that Eliza Hill had a breakdown over a guy?”

Sansa sat down, getting comfortable, “First off, if I was going to do that, I would have filmed you while I was in hiding, then stayed hidden so you wouldn't know it was me, and posted the video anonymously. If this gets spread around school, I won't be the cause of it. I'm too scared of you beating me up to do that.”

Eliza snorted again. “Don't lie. You're not scared of me anymore.”

“I must protest, I am quite scared of the pain you can inflict, but that's just common sense. I'm not scared of you as a person.”

Eliza snorted a third time, but with laughter instead of disdain. “Oh my god, are you always like this? Jeez, no wonder Sandor likes you so much.”

Sansa giggled as Eliza smiled the first  _ real _ smile she had ever seen on the girl. It brightened her eyes and softened the harsh lines of her face. “So, do you want to talk about it? Or do you want to go apologize to the store owner and see if she hasn't called the cops yet?”

She sighed. “Yes to both, I guess. But the second one first.”

After Eliza apologized and Sansa paid for her items, they went over to a nearby coffee shop. “I confessed to a guy today,” Eliza said after they had their coffee in hand. “Well, I planned to. But before I could actually approach him, one of his friends cut me off, and completely laughed in my face. Said his friend wouldn't go out with a she-male who makes awful grades and dresses so badly.”

Sansa glanced down at Eliza’s clothing. It was a nice outfit. Just… not on her. “Well…”

“It’s ok, I know it’s bad. The girl at the shop, she said it was a guaranteed cute outfit, especially if I wore my hair like this. I suppose I should have waited until she was there again, instead of yelling at the owner.” Eliza slumped down in her chair, slurping on her cold coffee drink.

“Hmm…probably. And the outfit is cute, but it’s completely wrong for you. It’s tailored for someone with narrow shoulders, and you have wide shoulders. It accentuates a pear shape, but you’re more of an square. And that hairstyle does not go with that outfit either. Honestly, the amount of people that call themselves ‘fashionistas’ and they can only put together one type of style.” She looked Eliza in the eye. “I can help you. If you want.”

She stared at Sansa. “Why?”

Sansa considered her answer. It wasn’t because she  _ wanted _ to be nice to Eliza in particular. It wasn’t even because she was Alayna and Sandor’s half-sister. “It’s the right thing to do. You asked for help, and the girl at the shop failed you. I can help you, if you let me.” Eliza continued to stare in disbelief. “And...maybe I can prove to you that I’m not an enemy, for whatever reason you believe me to be.” 

Eliza’s face went a bit flat at that. “I know you’re not. I’m… I’m sorry… about… all that…” She looked very uncomfortable, and Sansa was strongly reminded of Sandor. Except for their eyes, Eliza and Sandor could really almost pass for twins.

“Then...what do you say we start over?” She offered her hand out. “Hi, I’m Sansa Stark. I’m hopeless in my schoolwork, I love designing and making clothing, and I would like to try and be your friend.”

Eliza looked amused as she looked at the proffered hand. With a grin, she shook it and said, “Hi, I’m Eliza Hill. I’m aces at sports, I love a good workout at the gym, and I’m the outcast of my family.”

“Well, that makes two of us. Shall we go back to Triple M? I think I saw some items that would work on you.”

“I… I would like that,” Eliza said. She had this little half-grin on her face.  _ This is good, _ Sansa thought.

**********

_ This is bad, _ Sandor thought. Sansa was well again. She was up to texting and talking and hanging out. So why, in the past week, had he only seen her for a combined total of forty-five minutes (if that), and had more text conversations with  _ Tyrion _ of all people, than his best friend? She had stopped eating lunch with everyone, going instead to the library to study after wolfing down a quick meal. Everyday after school, when they would normally go do homework together, or watch a movie, or just hang out at the park and talk, she would say she had prom stuff to take care of and then jet off like a bat out of the seven hells. If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was avoiding him. But he did know better, didn’t he?

“Have you talked to Sansa lately?” he asked Alayna on Friday when he was once again left in the dust. Alayna and Arya were going out on a double date with Tormund and some sophomore named Podrick Payne, his mom was going to be out on a date as well, and he had wanted to ask Sansa to come over to watch a movie. Some teen bullshit movie where the awkward outcast guy gets the pretty girl (as if that ever happened in real life), and make some pancakes for dinner for her. Just  _ something _ to get back the normalcy between them. He didn’t even need sex with her, he just needed to hold her, touch her,  _ something _ to know they weren’t in some bizarro world.

“Of course I have. We’re really close. She’s like a  _ sister _ to me.”

Sandor’s eye twitched in annoyance. First, Arya gives him the cold shoulder, then Sansa seems to be avoiding him, and now his own sister was closing ranks. Was there some sort of girl code they were all keeping to? “Has she said if there’s anything bothering her?”

“Why don’t you ask her?” Alayna’s cold as steel eyes flashed at him.

“I have! She’s not… she’s not talking to me… Not the way she used to.” Sandor ran his fingers through his hair, exposing the scarred skin more than normal, but he didn’t even notice. “She says she’s fine, but when I look in her eyes… She’s not. Something’s wrong.”

“Well, maybe you should trust her a bit more. She knows what she’s on about,” Alayna said, flipping her hair. Besides Sansa, Sandor would have to say that Alayna was the next person he was closest to, but she wasn’t budging an inch.

“I  _ do _ trust her,” he said with force.

She turned on him with equal, if not greater, force.  _ “Do _ you? Because I don’t think that’s actually true. Not fully. I don’t think you take her very seriously either. How much did she put into her relationship with you and how much did you give back? Not much, if you ask me, considering the current state of it. So until you can figure out how to show her you trust her one-hundred per _ cent, _ you’re out of luck.” She walked off, leaving him in a lot of confusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 5pm and 7pm.
> 
> Ok, bonus question - Please do not confirm or deny someone else's answer, especially if it is an incomplete one. Please post Bonus Question Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled.  
> Name all three members of The Shield. (Ring names or real names.)  
> EDIT: Lalelilolu got the answer correct with Seth, Dean and Roman.


	24. We Don't Talk Anymore

“Wow…” Eliza said, looking at herself in the mirror. “I look…”

“Amazing? Fabulous? Hot?” Sansa supplied.

“Fucking bangable.”

Sansa laughed. “I take it you like my work?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely. How did you do it?” Eliza spun in front of the three panel mirror, admiring all sides of herself and not finding a single thing to criticize. Black and emerald green really were fantastic colors on her.

“It’s what I do. Pytha-gorgon’s theory gives me a headache, but give me some fabric, a needle and thread, and I will create miracles.”

Eliza laughed. “You mean Pythagorean's theorem.”

She shrugged. “Whatever. So, do you have a date or are you going solo?” Sansa asked as Eliza carefully stepped out of her dress. They were in Sansa’s little workshop. Every day that week, Sansa and Eliza had been hard at work, often only seeing Arya and Alayna on occasion (who were both hilariously flabbergasted by, yet positive about, the new friendship) as they put together outfits that looked good for her, as well as creating a dress for Eliza to wear to prom, a dress that would make that _awful_ boy who insulted her eat his words. She was proud to say they had succeeded.

“Going with my girls actually. I had a long talk with them. We’re not going to be bullying you or anyone else anymore.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, well, having your ass kicked by a ‘pink cupcake’ of a girl sort of makes you rethink your life strategy.” Sansa laughed at that. “Besides, it’s exhausting having that much rage built up everyday. I’m going to be taking summer classes, to bring my grades up, and then, _maybe,_ I’ll be attending Kingswood Community College in the fall semester. I’m barely passing most of my classes, except calculus, which I could pass in my sleep.” During their week together, Eliza had told her she had skipped so much school just to be defiant, that she was dangerously close to repeating a year.

“That’s great!”

“Yeah, _if_ I can ace my finals, _and_ pass the summer classes, then I’ll be able to go to KCC in the fall.”

“I’d offer to help you study, but I want you to actually do well!” Eliza laughed. “You know,” Sansa said, “My brother Jon might be able to help you. He’s a great tutor. Sandor helped me a lot with algebra, but Jon helped both Arya and me with literature and science. And he takes food as a form of payment.”

Eliza frowned. “Jon? I thought your brother was Robb?”

“Oh, yeah, but Jon Snow is my brother, too. Well, he’s actually my cousin, his mom is my dad’s sister, but he’s lived with us nearly his entire life, and he’s more of a brother at this point than a cousin.”

“J-J-Jon Sn-Snow is your _cousin?!”_ Eliza’s eyes became so wide, Sansa feared they might pop out of her skull.

“Uh...yeah. Why do you ask?”

“He’s the one I wanted to confess my feelings to!” Eliza sunk down onto the little couch, half dressed, and laughing a little maniacally. “I thought… I thought you were competition! Even when you were with my brother… I always saw you hanging around Jon and… oh my gods… I am so sorry…”

“Hey, it’s ok. Is that why you started in on me?” Sansa asked, sitting down next to Eliza.

Another manic laugh. “Yeah. I was so _jealous_ of you. I mean, you’re gorgeous. Jon’s gorgeous. You don’t _look_ like you’re related.”

“Oh, but we very much are,” Sansa said, laughing. “He takes after the Stark side of the family, like Arya. The rest of us take after our mother’s side, the Tullys. And Jon and I have nothing in common. If we weren’t related, I doubt we would hang around each other much. Oh, he, um… he still has a girlfriend back in King’s Landing, but they have a bit of an open relationship, which I find strange, but it works for them. If you’re ok with that, you should still try confessing to him. I think you would like Ygritte.” Sansa looked at her new friend. Was it odd that every child born to Coach Clegane was her friend? Except for Gregor, but Gregor was dead and he could suck it in all seven hells. “Hey…”

“Yeah?”

“Which of his friends was the one that…”

“Oh, Theon Greyjoy. Cocky asshole.”

Sansa sighed. “Should have known. Yeah, _never_ listen to Theon. He doesn't know what he's on about most of the time. He thinks with his boy parts and not his actual brain. He's actually our brother, too, but he wanted to keep his family name when Mom and Dad adopted him. His dad died in a freak rope bridge accident, and his older brothers didn’t want to be his guardians. His sister did, but she wasn’t old enough. She’s really cool and visits sometimes, but not lately. She’ll kick his ass when I tell her what he said to you.”

“Good to know.” Eliza smiled, then fell silent as she finished getting dressed. “Hey, Sansa?”

“Yeah?” She was putting Eliza's dress in a plastic garment bag.

“What happened between you and Sandor?”

She hesitated before answering. “What makes you think something happened?”

Eliza scoffed. “I have pretty much stalked you all year long, and nearly all year, you’ve been joined at the hip, but after our little confrontation... You said some things I didn’t understand at the time, and you haven't spent any time with him lately. You've been avoiding him. And you're not as happy as you usually are. You're in love with him, and he's in love with you. That usually means happiness, doesn't it?”

“Usually, but… you're wrong. He's not in love with me.” She turned around to face Eliza.

“Bullshit.”

Sansa smiled in wry amusement. “Afraid not. He asked someone else to prom. Someone prettier and smarter than me. Can't really blame him. I'm a complete idiot for thinking someone as cool and smart and wonderful as him would want to date stupid, little me. I thought I hit the jackpot with him, but it was all a pretty lie in my head.”

“What are you talking about? You're not dating? Since when?”

Sansa shrugged. “Since the beginning. I… I thought we were. So I… I kissed him. I made all the moves on him. He never stopped me, thought I was using him as a practice partner for… for another guy, which I wasn’t, but…”

Eliza stepped forward to stand in front of her. “Sansa...how far did you go?”

“I… I thought he loved me...so I…” Her vision blurred as the tears pooled in her eyes.

“You went all the way with him, didn't you?” Eliza asked gently, more gently than Sansa thought she was capable of. She nodded, sniffling a little. She wiped her eyes and tried to laugh.

“More than a few times. A lot of times, actually... I thought it was only natural, since I loved him, still love him... I enjoyed doing it with him, and I _wanted_ to be with him, since I believed we were a couple…but now...now that I know...”

“So now that you know you’re not, you aren't able to look at him in the same way as before,” Eliza finished for her. Sansa nodded. “Shit… that's really heavy stuff, man. I guess this means you won't be attending prom at all?”

“Yeah. He thinks I'm going with Harrold Hardyng for some reason, but I was just going to stay home, work on some designs. Maybe go see a movie? Maybe just watch something here. I don't know, I just know I'm not going to be at prom. I already told my friends. Lollys, Shae and Brienne begged me to reconsider at first. They don't understand, since I didn't tell them everything, but they're respecting my decision.”

“That sucks. You sure? You could join my group for the night? The girls want to make up with you over how they treated you.”

“Tell them it's water under the bridge. We're friends now, so, all is forgiven. And I'll be fine. I just _really_ don't want to see Sandor dancing with Daenerys Targaryen. Especially since I'm the one that taught him. He said it’s a fake date, that she wants to make her boyfriend jealous, but… yeah. And Sandor'll probably be wearing a suit I made for him. Double daggers to my heart.” She tried to smile, laugh it off, but Eliza knew.

“Well, if you change your mind, let me know.”

“Thank you, Eliza, but I won't.”

**********

Sandor looked towards the doors whenever anyone walked in, only to be disappointed when he didn’t see Sansa. The main dance and dining area was in the ballroom of the hotel, but there were other areas that the guests could occupy. Not wanting to be obvious in his search, he stayed seated, but kept a watchful eye out, pulling nervously at the collar of his suit. Sure enough, it looked really good on him, and more than a few girls had given him a double take, but he didn't care what they thought. Dany had abandoned him almost immediately, whatever argument she had been having with Drogo forgotten as they sucked each other's face off.

Brienne and Shae were dancing together, leaving Jaime to Tyrion since Jaime had been acting out (again). Brie was oddly graceful and, like Sandor, was wearing an outfit custom made by Sansa. She looked really good in it and had been hit on by a few of their classmates, male and female alike, much to Jaime’s horror. Everyone knew Brienne was too good for him, and it was amusing to see him have to work for his girlfriend’s attention, even if she only had eyes for him.

Eliza looked really good in her formal dress and was dancing with Jon while Theon stared at them the entire time. She looked...happy. Calm. Like she didn't want to murder the world. It was strange and unnerving.

Sandor had been surprised to see Alayna there with Tormund. _That date must have gone really well._ He had ended up sitting with them, and a few of the others from the football team, since Jaime, Brienne, Tyrion, Shae, Bronn _and_ Lollys weren’t speaking to him for some reason. Beric asked what that was all about, but Sandor honestly had no idea. He was surprised Alayna was being nice to him again, though he suspected it was because Tormund was there, and she didn’t want to draw him into whatever drama she had concocted about Sandor.

“So where's your date?” Alayna asked, settling down on Tormund’s lap after moshing alone in the middle of the dance floor. Beric's boyfriend had attempted to join her, but considering how destructive the two were on their own, both Sandor and Beric had agreed to keep Alayna and Ramsay separated.

Sandor pointed over to Dany and Drogo, still going at it, “She's attached to her boyfriend at the moment.”

Alayna rolled her eyes. “Oh, ha ha, very funny. You know I meant Sansa.”

“Sansa's not my date.”

A lesser person would have withered under the glare Alayna gave him, and indeed, Beric and Tormund got out of the splash zone. “So… she wasn't kidding. I really thought... I had hoped it was just some sick joke you were playing on her, but you really _did_ bring the Targaryen as your date. You fucking idiot.”

He took a drink of his fruit punch and swallowed nervously. “She's not my _date_. Not really. She was just trying to make Drogo jealous. Besides, Sansa came with Harry. Not like I could ask her if she was already going with someone.”

“You fucking _dense potato..._ She asked me not to say anything, but this just takes the godsbedamned cake! She would have come with you if you had the _fucking balls_ to ask her! Gods! You don't deserve her! At all! To be her friend, her servant, hells, you don't even deserve to be _stepped_ on by her boots! That's how low below her you are. No! Shut the fuck up! _I am talking!”_ she said, cutting him off when he tried to speak. “She gave you _everything._ And what did you do? Treat her like her feelings were inconsequential. Ignored what the _rest_ of us saw clear as day.”

“Yeah?! And what was that?!” he snarled, jumping up to loom over her. Sister or not, she was pissing him off.

Alayna was not impressed. “Beric,” she said, calmly turning to him. “Does Sandor have a girlfriend?”

Sandor snorted. “Of course I don--”

“Sansa Stark. He's dating Robb’s sister, isn't he?” Beric said, looking really confused. “I thought it was weird that you came with Dany, but we all know Dany is her own force of nature, so I didn’t question it.”

“And you, Tor? What is your impression of Sandor's love life?” Alayna asked. She was still glaring daggers at him.

“Currently? He's probably in the doghouse for bringing another girl as his date and for letting his girlfriend come to prom with another guy,” the ginger bastard said. “But yeah, I thought you had finally found someone. The way she looks at you like you hung the moon and stars, and the way you look at her like she's the sun and center of the universe, ya’ll had a lot of people jealous this year.”

“That's absur-- If people thought we were dating, then why did Harry ask her out?” he protested.

Ramsay rolled his eyes. “How stupid are you? The firecracker was right to call you a dense potato. Harry asks out girls whether they have a boyfriend or not. Sometimes it's _because_ of who their boyfriends are. He's a dick. If I could just get him alone for a weekend…”

“Ramsay,” Beric said with a warning tone. The shorter boy huffed but was silent.

“I think I need a drink… something stronger than fruit punch,” Sandor said. Alayna _hrumpf_ at him and dragged Tormund over to the dance floor.

“Tyrion probably has something. He's usually the one that spikes the punch at these shindigs,” Beric said.

Sandor found Tyrion, who only needed a little bit of cajoling and twenty bucks to hand it over grudgingly, and headed outside with the borrowed flask. He had no idea what he was drinking, but he embraced the pain of the burning liquid and took several swigs as he sat on the loading dock behind the hotel where the prom was being held, coughing only half a lung up on the first sip. His head swam a little as he thought about what his sister had revealed.

_Everyone thought we were dating? How? Alayna’s right. I’m not good enough for her, and no one should have ever have thought an angel like her would dirty herself with someone like me, even if she did. I don't deserve someone as wonderful as Sansa. I've been lucky this whole school year, being allowed to know her, to touch her… _

“Thought that was you.”

Sandor turned and scoffed when he saw who it was. “What do you want, Eliza?”

“A little birdie told me that you and Stark aren't actually dating.”

“That so? Can't believe everyone thought someone as beautiful and talented as Sansa would lower herself to my level. Would be the fucking jackpot if that happened,” he said, taking another swig, grimacing from the burn, but it wasn’t as bad now.

Eliza laughed. “Oh, gods, you even say the same things.”

“What are you blabbering on about?”

Eliza snorted. “Wouldn't you like to know? But… Considering you're not with her, and by all accounts, are probably not even friends anymore...” Sandor felt like he had been stabbed in the gut, since it was starting to seem like it was true. “I guess that means she's _fair game.”_

He got to his feet as quickly as he could, but the drink Tyrion provided him with was strong and he stumbled, unused to inebriation. “You leave her the fuck alone, Eliza.”

His half-sister grabbed him by the collar and he really regretted drinking so much so quickly. His head was spinning as she hauled him in close. Unlike Alayna, Eliza was nearly as tall as him, just as strong, and she was stone cold sober. “No, _you_ leave her the fuck alone. You _broke_ her heart, and for some reason, she still cares about you. So if you _ever_ approach her again, you had better not break it a second time because you will have to answer to _me._ Sansa Stark is under _my_ protection now. And I will not hesitate to beat you into the ground if you hurt her again. Alayna might even help me on this one.” She shoved him away, sending him sprawling onto the pavement. “Hells, from what I understand, your _mom_ would help me, if she knew everything that happened between you and Sansa.”

He stared up at her. “What do you know about it? You don't even _know_ her!” he growled, ignoring whatever the fuck he was now lying in.

She grinned. “I suppose I have you to thank for it, seeing as how she was avoiding _you_ when I ran into her both times, but, long story short, we're friends now. That's really all you need to know. I can even prove it. Doesn't this dress look wonderful on me? She really is talented, like you said.”

He looked down at the dress. How hadn't he noticed it before? It was Sansa's design, through and through.

“I can tell by the look on your face that you do recognize her work. I'll be going now. Remember what I said.” She turned and walked a few steps. “Oh, by the way, I heard Hardyng just got caught in the stairwell banging his date. Didn't even make it up to the room he had booked, the moron. His girlfriends are going apeshit, and the chaperones are handling it, but it's a mess. When you go back inside, steer clear of the side entrance. I'm walking all the way to the front just to avoid it.”

Sandor turned away, on his hands and knees, and threw up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to mrsiacuna for naming Sandor the dense potato. I had to use that for Alayna's continued verbal assault on her brother. :)
> 
> So... Still hate Eliza? I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel a small amount of satisfaction over Sandor's reaction.
> 
> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 9am and 11am.


	25. Quiet Isle Grocery

Sansa had had it with feeling sorry for herself. If she was going to be depressed, then she might as well eat her feelings. Her mother found her rooting around the pantry. “Looking for anything in particular?”

“Salt and vinegar chips. Craving them like there's no tomorrow,” she said, not turning around. “I think we're out.”

“Rickon eats those like he breathes air. I can get some more, but I thought you hated them?”

Sansa shrugged, looking behind the cereal boxes. “Yeah, but they sound really good right now. Crazy, right? I might just go to the store myself.”

“Funny how you hate them. When I was pregnant with you, I craved them all the time!” Her mother laughed. “Let me know if you want some company to the store,” she said, walking around her and out the door on the other side of the kitchen, not noticing how still Sansa had gone.

_She craved them… Pregnant?! Oh gods… when did I last have my period???_ She ran to her room and pulled out a calendar. _Oh gods… Could I be? With Sandor's…_ She lay her hand over her abdomen. _Is it possible? We were always so careful... but condoms aren't 100%, and we did hump like rabbits...I don't even know how I should feel...is this a good thing? A bad thing?_ First, she needed to confirm it.

She grabbed a light jacket and headed out the door. “Mom! Heading to the store!” she yelled. “I’ll be back soon!”

“Ok! Pick up some apple juice and milk while you're there!”

**********

Sandor felt awful. He reeked of alcohol, vomit, motor oil, and some other things he didn't want to contemplate. _At least I'm not buzzed anymore._ His brief stint in drunkenness had evaporated in the time since that godsawful drink was forcibly removed from his stomach. He managed to drive, but hadn't gone home. Instead, he found himself at Quiet Isle Grocery, searching for EB. He had seen the man on numerous occasions since he had helped Sandor so many months ago, usually waving hello or engaging in idle chitchat, but he had never actively sought him out. He found the store manager, a man named Meribald, tending to a spill in the produce section.

“Hi, um, is EB around?”

“He's in the back office, but I can help you find something,” the man said with a smile.

“Uh, thanks, but I need to talk to him in particular.”

Meribald smiled kindly and nodded. “As you prefer. Go to the bakery, and enter the swinging doors to the left of the counter. His office is the first door you'll see. Should be open.”

“Thanks, man.”

Sandor walked quickly, avoiding getting too close to anyone on the way. EB didn't look surprised to see him. “Saw you on the monitors,” he said, pointing to the small wall of security feeds displayed. “What happened?”

“That obvious?” he asked.

EB pulled a chair up and patted it. “Son, you're dressed up, you smell awful, and you’re here instead of the biggest dance for Kingswood High. If something hasn’t happened, then you’ve got a screw loose. So, talk to me.”

Sandor took a moment to appreciate the man. He didn’t have to listen to him, but he welcomed him into his office, told him to sit down and just...talk.

“You remember that first day I met you? There was that girl…”

“Yes, Sansa Stark. She comes by often. We’ve chatted a few times in passing.”

Sandor leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “I… I think I messed up with her. See… we started off as friends. That fight we had that you helped me with, we had barely known each other two days. I knew I liked her already, but… look at me.” He gestured to his scars. “Girls aren’t exactly lining up to be friends with me, let alone want to date me. So… I thought that’s all we were, just friends. Then, we somehow became best friends, and it was great. I could talk to her about nearly everything, and I knew she wouldn’t judge me. We don’t have a lot in common, but it still worked out, you know? Then… about six months ago… she kissed me. And I’ve _never_ had a girl kiss me like that. I… In my freshman year, there were some senior girls, and they made a bet that whoever could sleep with me would win. I was an idiot, being given attention by these older girls who I thought liked me… I had a crush on one in particular, and she… she won the bet. And laughed in my face once it was all over. I was humiliated, but at least they didn’t tell anyone. They didn’t want to admit what they had done, and I was fine letting it be.”

“Did you tell Sansa about this?”

“No. Probably should have. It's just... when she first kissed me… it felt _right_ and also strange, but I mostly just didn’t want it to end. When it did, I realized that she must have wanted to use me as a practice partner.”

“Must have?”

“Yeah, it gets confusing later on, which is why I’m here, but I’ll get to that. So after she kisses me that day, she ends up kissing me more the next day and the day after, and the day after that... and I let her. I wanted to be a good friend, but I also wanted her to myself, and when she kissed me, it felt like she was mine. It was only after the physical connection was broken that I remembered that she wasn’t. I loved her already, but I hadn’t admitted it to myself yet. Then, right after school let out for winter break, we… we messed around a little, and she told me she wanted to have sex, that she wanted me to be her first. I… I should have said no, should have drawn the line in the sand there, at that moment. Or told her how I felt. I was finally admitting to myself that I was in love with her, and that if we did have sex, it wouldn’t be as just friends. It  _couldn't_ be. That I couldn’t continue being her practice dummy. But I didn’t and I was so stupid not to. I let her use me. I _wanted_ her to use me. I felt horrible afterwards, because she was just _practicing_ on me, and would eventually stop so that she could have a real boyfriend to have sex with. I should have stopped, but I couldn’t. She was willing to have sex... _with me._ I was crazy to continue, but I would have been crazy to stop at the same time. Sex with her…” He leaned back in the chair, trying to find the words. “It was so much better than when I slept with that senior girl, who was much more experienced. It was awkward, but fun and it was great _because_ it was with Sansa. Literally, the only thing that could have made it better was if she returned my feelings.”

“And she didn’t?” EB asked.

“That’s what I thought. We continued like this, being best friends, hanging out, and having sex whenever we could. Sometimes she stayed over at my house, sometimes I’d stay over at hers, usually when she snuck me in after everyone was asleep. Her parents would have killed us. Well, her dad would have, I think her mom would have...maybe not _encouraged_ it, but she would have understood? I don’t know how to explain Mrs. Stark…”

“She’s an interesting woman,” EB said with a laugh. “Once bought a week's worth of groceries for a woman who could barely afford her cold medicine. But, please continue.”

“I knew this strange balance we had of best friends and fuck buddies would eventually come to an end. One of the most sought after guys at school was chasing her, asking her to prom. How could she say no to him? He’s rich, charming, handsome…everything I'm not. I’ve only known _one_ girl to turn him down, and that’s because she’s crazy in love with her boyfriend. They have this very complicated relationship. And I’ve been caught in the crosshairs of it before. It’s easier to just go with the flow and wait until it’s blown over. Dany, she asked me if she could be my date to prom, because she wanted to make Drogo jealous for some reason. I knew Sansa was going with Harry anyway, so I said yes. Then, a little more than two weeks ago, before we started a tutoring session, I told her about it, because Dany was renting a limo and wanted to know if anyone else wanted to join in. I couldn’t look at her, knowing that we had reached our time limit, that if we fucked that day, it might be our last time. I was going to make it count, make sure she would never forget what we had together...”

Sandor shook his head, his whole body was trembling slightly. “I didn’t know that there wouldn’t be a next time… She wasn’t feeling well, so we didn’t even have the tutoring. She went home, and then she was out for the next week, sick at home. I couldn’t see her, I couldn’t reach her at all. She didn’t answer my texts, my phone calls… her parents told me she wasn’t seeing anyone, that she wasn’t using her phone at all… So I waited for her to return to school. Waited for her to return to _me._ She didn’t… I mean, she went back to school, but in this last week, I’ve barely seen her, barely talked to her, even in texts… it felt like she was avoiding me, but she wouldn’t. Not without good reason. Even if she was ready to start dating Harry, she _wouldn’t_ just avoid me. Not for something like that. I could have tried harder, but...I was scared. Fuck... I was so looking forward to tonight, if only because I’ve missed her so fucking much, and I was going to ask her to dance to a slow song, just so I could hold her one more _fucking_ time before I lost her to Harry for good… I hate that shitbrain. So. Fucking. Much. Even before I knew Sansa, I hated him. He’s got so much going for him and he just _wastes_ it.” Sandor paused. He sniffed and used the back of his hand to wipe away the few tears that had escaped.

“I sat at the table with my friends, with some former teammates. Just watching the door… and waiting. Waiting for her to arrive.” He looked down at his suit. “She made this. And damn if I don’t look good in it. Or did, before I fell in whatever the hells that stuff was. I wanted her to see me in it. I wanted to see her eyes light up when she saw how good it looks on me. Fuck… I think I miss that the most, the way she looked at me, like I was the only one in her view. Like I was special. And I wanted to be special, just for her.” He sniffed back the snot gathering in his nose, taking the tissue EB offered him.

“Did she show up?”

Sandor blew his nose and shook his head, rocking back and forth in his chair a little anxiously. “No. Never got to see her. Got into an argument with my sister. She’s a freshman, but she was invited by a former teammate of mine. Probably the only guy who can stand up to her, now that I think about it. She couldn’t believed that I wouldn’t bring Sansa as my date, and when I showed her that I had brought Dany instead, she started yelling at me. Said that she had thought...well, she thought we were dating, I guess. Then she asked my friends, guys I've known forever, have been teammates with, and I thought they would _know_ I didn’t have a girlfriend, but they agreed with her, that they thought I was dating Sansa. Why would they think that? Sansa is much too good for me. Ended up going behind the hotel and drinking from a flask I got from another friend. It hit me hard, quickly. And that’s when Eliza showed up.”

“Eliza?”

“My half sister,” Sandor clarified. “She’s not the _friendliest_ of people. She was the one that pushed me down into whatever the hells that puddle was. Fucking gross. She had been bullying Sansa earlier in the year, it was because of her that I met Sansa in the first place. And she tells me that she heard that Sansa is fair game now. I assumed she meant because we haven’t been hanging out and she was going to start bullying her again, but no… She tells me that _I_ need to watch out, because _I_ hurt Sansa, and she was Sansa’s protector now. So fucked up. I don’t know when it happened, but they became friends. And she was warning _me_ against hurting Sansa. _Me._  Said I broke Sansa’s heart, but...how can I break it unless…” He took in a deep breath, shuddering a little as he did so. “Unless she cares about me like I care about her… Unless she loves me… just as much as I… But then Eliza said Harry, the guy who asked Sansa to prom, was caught in the hotel stairwell with his date and they were… they were…fu-- fu--” He sobbed, his whole body shuddering. He couldn’t even say it. After everything he had ever been through, and he couldn’t even admit that Sansa may have been having sex with Harry in the hotel.

“Why would she be doing that,” EB asked gently, “if she is in love with you?”

“I don’t know… That’s what scares me. To think that I hurt her enough that she would do that… I couldn't even go back inside the hotel... Just ran away...” Sandor wiped his eyes, not caring that the tears were running down his face.

“What would you say to her now, if you could?”

“Is she behind me again?” Sandor asked half-jokingly, hoping she was.

EB shook his head. “No, but pretend like she is.”

Sandor lowered his head. He could easily imagine her standing behind him, ready to chastise him for getting her creation dirty. She’d tease him into a smile, and then take him home, clean him up, and kiss him until he couldn’t think of anything but her. Why hadn’t he seen it before? It was glaringly obvious. She loved him. “I’m sorry, Sansa. For not… For not trusting you. For not trying harder to fix our relationship during all this. For not seeing what I should have seen. For not seeing my own worth, and what you saw in me. I’m sorry for not telling you the truth, that I love you, that I don’t want you to date Harry or any other guy. I’m sorry I’m such a numbskull. A dense potato.”

He looked back up at EB, who was smiling at him. “Feel better?”

“A bit, yeah. Like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”

“I’m glad. One question.”

“Yeah?”

“Are you _sure_ Sansa was Harry’s date? You said yourself, you didn’t see either of them, and you didn’t say if anyone else saw her.” EB tilted his head, glancing at the security monitors. “Is it possible she wasn’t even there?”

Sandor hadn’t considered it. “Fuck. I’m going to have to apologize for assuming she went with Harry in the first place…”

“Most likely. Now, might I suggest--”

The walkie talking on the table sprang to life, _“EB! Come in! EB! Come in! We have a situation in the produce section. Over.”_

He picked up the radio and answered, “On my way. Over.” Turning to Sandor he said, “Would you mind waiting a bit? Meribald tends to overreact, so I’m sure it won’t be long.”

“Yeah, that’s fine. I’ll just...stay here?”

“Of course. There’s some bottled water in the mini-fridge if you’d care for some.” He left Sandor to contemplate his next move. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, Sandor opened it to Sansa’s contact info, staring at the picture of her attached to it. She was smiling so brightly.

_Should I try calling her?_ He didn’t want to do that. If he was going to talk to her, he wanted to do it in person. He thought about everything that had happened between them, even before the first kiss, changing his frame of reference from “Practice Dummy” to “Boyfriend”. He soon realized that he truly was an idiot, and that if Sansa ever took him back, he was going to have a lot to make up for. _Why did she even put up with my dumb ass?_

_Because I love you. Dummy._ He smiled at Sansa’s voice in his head. He looked over at the security monitors. EB and Meribald were chasing some crazy kid around the produce section. Sandor sighed, and grabbed a pen and paper.

_Looks like you have your hands full,_ he wrote. _Thanks for your help. I think I know what I need to do. --Sandor_

He briefly considered buying flowers, but opted to go to the candy department and buy the organic truffles Sansa liked so much. The cashier watched him warily, wrinkling her nose at him and using only her fingertips to touch the money he gave her. He couldn’t really blame her, even if it was annoying.

_Ok, now to go home, take a shower, and then see if I can catch Sansa still awak--_

“Oh!” a voice said as he bumped into someone, knocking them down. A pregnancy test fell from their bag, clattering to his feet.

“You dropped this,” he said picking the box up and handing it to, “Sansa?!” She was looking up at him from the floor, her eyes were wide and full of fear.

“You’re supposed to be at prom,” she whispered. “What are you doing here…”

“Me? What about you? And this?!” He shook the pregnancy test. “What the hell?!”

Her lower lip quivered. “I… I… I’m sorry!” she cried as she got up and ran out of the grocery store, her grocery bag making her running more awkward than usual.

“Ahhh, shit…” He hadn’t meant to do that.

“I’ll say,” EB said, appearing out of nowhere. “Go on, son. Surely you can catch up with her?”

Sandor snorted, tucked the pregnancy test into his own bag, stretched his legs a bit, and then took off after her at a medium jog. He caught up with her before she got to the edge of the parking lot. “Sansa…”

She was being stubborn, which she was good at, but he couldn’t let her get too stubborn about things. He grabbed her hand and partially dragged but mostly led her back to his car. He opened the door for her, and pushed her into the passenger seat not ungently. He held his breath as he walked around the front of the car, hoping she wouldn’t try to take off again before he got into the driver’s seat, and was rewarded with a small and curious, “It smells weird in here,” when he got into the car. He turned on the engine and rolled down the windows, then turned to face her.

“Better?” She nodded. “Good. Sorry about that, it’s… not important right now. Sansa, look at me.” She shook her head. He could tell that she was biting the inside of her mouth, nervous to be in his presence again. “Why not?”

“I’m afraid…” she whispered.

“Of me?” She shook her head. “Then of what?”

“Your eyes… Of what I’ll see in them,” she said. “I… I was going to tell you… if the test was positive… I swear…”

“I know you would. I shouldn’t have yelled at you. I was surprised, that’s all.” She still wouldn’t look at him. “You weren’t at prom.”

“Why would I go?”

“You were looking forward to it,” he said. She had been going on and on about the dress she had made for weeks, something green, and soft, and how awesome they would look together-- _Oh. Well, shit. That was another indication that I just completely missed._

“Yeah, and then I wasn’t. I changed my mind about it. I still have next year,” she reasoned.

“I was looking forward to it.” She didn’t move her head, but her eyes darted in his direction. “I really wanted to go with you.”

She scoffed. “Yeah, I could tell. Went and asked _Daenerys Targaryen,_ that’s how much you wanted to go with me,” she said a little bitterly. “That's how it _always_ is.”

The “always” part confused him, but he had to make her understand. “I told you, _she_ asked _me,_ and it wasn’t a real date, she and I are just friends. Barely friends, really. She just wanted to make her boyfriend jealous. She abandoned me as soon as we got there.” He saw Sansa wince. “And then I spent the rest of the evening wishing I could see you, kicking myself for not asking you to go with me.”

“You did?” She sounded like she didn’t believe him.

“Yeah, I did."

"But I _asked_ you to go with me, and you forgot..." she mumbled.

"When?" he asked, frowning.

"The morning I first slept over at your house... And you said you would go, to just remind you about it before..."

_Wha... Oh. OH. Shit._ "Sansa, I am so sorry, I... I thought you were talking about something else...and I’ve been having a really shitty time without you, ever since you got sick. Today was worst. Alayna yelled at me on your behalf. Enough that I went to Tyrion and borrowed, well, _bought_ actually, one of his flasks. Got drunk. Then Eliza threatens me, tells me she’s going to beat me into the ground if I hurt you again.”

“Your sisters did that? For me?” He almost smiled by how touched she seemed by their gestures.

“Yeah. They care about you, apparently. More importantly, _I_ care about you,” he said. Her gaze went back to the floor. “Sansa… please. Talk to me. I know I hurt you, and I'm sorry. I thought… I thought wrong. Everything we did…”

“You thought I was _using_ you. For _practice,”_ she said. “I would never do that to you. I would never do that to _anyone,_ but least of all you!”

“I know… now. I know that now, and I'm sorry--”

“Sandor, I have known I was in love with you since the day you cheered me up because of our bet for the homecoming dance.” She turned to him, her eyes a little wild. “I wanted to say the words for so long... I've almost said them so many times, even managed to mumble them on Valentine's Day, but you didn't hear me, and I didn't repeat them. I was scared.”

“Of what?”

“Of this. This very scenario. That you'd reject me once I said them,” she said. “I'm not… I'm not smart, or athletic, or particularly clever. I can spend hours hunched over a sewing project, I can be so _stupid_ and stubborn about things… but I hoped that you could overlook those flaws and maybe love me…”

“I'm sorry…”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Don't, please don't. I can't take your pity. Not right now.”

“No, I'm sorry I didn't say this sooner, but I… I love you, too.”

“Don't lie to me!” she hissed.

“Sansa, I'm not lying--” She wretched open the car door and got out. “Sansa!”

“Leave me alone! If you don't love me, that's fine, but don't lie to me!” she screamed. She walked away towards her home.

“Little bird, please, get back in the car, I'll drive you home,” he pleaded, getting out of the car, but not approaching her, fearing she'd run off. It was like dealing with a wild animal. “We don't have to say anything else, so please…”

Another car passed by, out on the street, with several of their classmates hanging out the windows and hollering at the top of their lungs. She paused as she watched them disappear down the street, and turned back to the car. True to his word, Sandor didn't say anything else until they were in front of her house.

“Sansa…” She tensed and it was all he could do to keep from taking her in his arms. “Little bird, can we talk again? Later?”

She didn't respond, and walked back into her house without saying goodbye. Sandor got home, feeling defeated. He rid himself of the ruined suit and took a long hot shower. He saw a text waiting for him on his phone when he got out.

**LittleBird: Maybe...tomorrow...or the day after... Ok?**

His heart soared. It was a tiny step, but it was a step.

**SC: ok :)**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's that term? Woke? Baby!Hound is woke.
> 
> Tomorrow's update will be posted between 4pm and 6pm.


	26. I Won’t Give Up, Jason Mraz

Sansa stared at her phone, at the little happy face he had just sent her. She wanted to believe him, she really, _really_ did, but she was hesitant. She had wanted to believe Joffrey, too, and look where that got her. **Sandor is different from Joffrey. You're just scared of being hurt again. Big baby.**

_So what if I'm being a baby about it. Babies are all about instinct and avoiding things that cause owies. Um...pain. I meant pain._

**Sandor didn't mean to hurt you. And he apologized. He… he said he loves you… and you believed that he loved you before the whole mess with Daenerys. Really, he’s just confirming what you already knew.**

_I know… I just… Why? Why would he love stupid me? And if he loves me, why didn’t he think we were dating, or why did he take HER instead of me or…_

**He made a mistake. You make plenty of them. Joffrey being at the top of the list. And how about how you just ran away from the problem? You didn't try talking to him, or fighting for him, you went from believing he loved you, to suddenly he doesn't?! And you didn't fight! At all! You didn't fight for him, for the love you have with him!!** She winced from her internal scolding, a voice that reminded her an awful lot of Arya. **If you love him, you have to fight for him! You have to apologize for running away. You have to make him see that you love him, to know that you only want him. You can do it!** Now it sounded like Alayna. She sighed.

Talking to herself wasn't going to do her any good. _I'll call him tomorrow. For sure. We will have a long, long talk, and...and maybe we can start over again. And then...and then we can find out if I'm... if I'm pregnant. Together. For now, just relax, focus on what you can do in this moment. Homework. I'll do my homework. And then get a good night's sleep so that tomorrow I'll be well rested and can go into town and window shop. Get some ideas. Brie wanted something for graduation, and I know just the fabric to use...And then I'll call Sandor in the afternoon. Good. This is good.  
_

**********

“Sandor, there's a girl here to see you,” his mother said through the door. He was up and out of his chair, throwing open the door violently to her surprise.

“Sansa?” he asked excitedly.

“No, but this one is almost as pretty. White blonde hair, purple eyes…”

He deflated. “Oh, that's just Dany. I'll be down in a minute. She's taking me to Braavosi Pavilion for lunch today. Says I helped her patch things up with Drogo.”

“Ah, the nice boy with the long hair and tribal tattoos. Well, have fun. Go see Sansa after and bring her a dessert from the Pavilion, my treat. I've missed having her around.” She dug a crisp twenty dollar bill from her pocket and handed it to him.

He sighed. “I've missed her, too, Mom.”

“Sweetie, is everything alright between you two? I don't mean to pry, I'm just concerned.”

Sandor tried to put in a brave face, but his mom was an infallible lie detector. He shook his head, his mouth set in a line. “Not really. I messed up, and I tried to apologize, but I managed to make it worse.”

“Oh, my baby boy… Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No, it's something I've got to figure out myself. I better get going. I'll go see Sansa after, for sure.”

^v^v^v^v^

Dany had a towncar and a driver. _Oh, of course she does,_ he thought with a sigh. She jabbered on and on about her time at King's Landing High, about classes and clubs and a lot of crap Sandor wasn't interested in. He was regretting his agreement to free food at a swanky restaurant, when she brought up the laughingstock of KLH. At least _that_ was interesting.

“Joffrey is, like, _the worst._ And no one tells him no! Just because his mommy and daddy are such highly ranked people. But _come on!_ Our team was zero and fifteen last season! There is no way he should be allowed on the field, let alone be the starting quarterback again. Soooooo glad I'm graduating. He keeps hitting on me, too, even though I keep telling him I have a boyfriend that could, like, snap him in half. Oh, by the way, Drogo will be joining us. And that poor girl Joffrey was with when I first transferred in, he was terrible to her! He humiliated her in front of the whole school, at one of the biggest events of the year, completely denouncing her, destroyed her even, by showing a video of her being bullied into drinking, getting smashed and having some friends of his hold her down as he ripped her clothing off of her, forcing her to scream for her life. It was really bad, but the video thankfully cut off before anything even _worse_ happened. Sort of looked like someone or something attacked them..."

Dany paused and then sighed, "She _had_ to move away, her entire family did, because of it. Which I _totally_ get, fresh start and all that. What was really awful, her parents were friends with his parents, and when they demanded he be punished for what he did to their daughter, his mom just, like, laughed and his father went along with it. Lifelong friendship between the dads, and that wasn't enough. That's another reason they moved, I suppose. Get away from all that toxicity. Joke was on them," she said with a laugh. "Mayor Baratheon’s finances are being looked into now. They got, like, one of the best lawyers, Olenna Tyrell, looking into the Baratheon case. She’s going to _massacre_ them if she finds anything, which I would _not_ bet against. Joffrey went after Margaery, Olenna's favorite grandchild, when they ran against each other in the school elections and it sooooo blew up in his face. So, like, what does he do? Makes an enemy of her entire family by spreading rumors that were _known_ to be lies. He was the one that looked like a fool _and_ the Tyrells hate him. Good job, Joff.” She laughed again. "It's so amusing, because of his mom he still gets special treatment, but since, like, almost everyone hates him, it doesn't really do him any good."

They had arrived at the restaurant. Drogo was already seated at the table. He didn't look it, with his long hair, tattoos, and impressive beard, but he came from a powerful family on par with Dany’s. They looked as different as the sun and moon, but Sandor was always of the opinion that they were perfect for each other.

“Sandor, how you been, brother?” Drogo asked, clapping him on the back as they hugged a greeting before sitting down. “Been a long time.”

“Saw you on Saturday, man. You were just a bit preoccupied with this one,” he said, pointing at Dany. She grinned, completely unapologetic.

“Ha, yeah. Maybe a bit,” Drogo said sheepishly, holding Dany's hand. “Since you brought it up, and if it hadn't been for you, it wouldn't have happened, so we want you to be the first to know. Dany and I are engaged now.”

Sandor was stunned. “Wow. That's… wow.”

Drogo and Dany laughed. “Yeah, but it's, like, going to be a long engagement,” she said. “My dad is going to _insist_ on it. My mom might be able to make him see reason, but, like, it's a long shot.”

“I'll wait as long as it takes, babe,” Drogo said, making kisses at her.

“Aawwwww! Babe…” She grinned back at him, leaning in to reward him with a kiss.

“You guys are disgustingly adorable,” Sandor said with a grin and a shake of his head.

Drogo barked a laugh. “Don't hate, man. I've seen you with your girlfriend. Talk about adorable together. I'm surprised she was ok with you taking Dany to prom.”

“Girlfriend?” Dany looked over at him in confusion. "What girlfriend? You said..."

“Yeah...about that...you know that girl I told you about?” he said, staring very intently at the tiny fork that he had no idea what its purpose was.

“You said you were, like, just friends,” Dany said with a frown. She pulled out her phone. “Give me her name and address, I will send her a ‘please forgive Sandor for being an idiot’ basket. Something with, like, lots of chocolate. And flowers. Spa treatments...” She was typing furiously on her phone.

“Yeah, she's understandably mad at me. It's complicated, but Sansa and I--”

“Sansa?” Dany asked, looking up at him sharply. “Don’t tell me… You're dating Sansa Stark?!”

“Uh… yes? Well, that's kind of... It's complica--”

“Oh. Em. Gee. She didn't tell you, did she? But why would she? She must want to forget it ever happened…” Dany was muttering to herself. “Shit, I never would have thought… I never would have asked had I known… Jeez, you’re an idiot. Why did you say yes to me?!”

“Dany, what the hells are you going on about?” Sandor asked, feeling very drained by the entire situation.

“That story I told you, about Joffrey and the girl he was seeing that had to move away?” Sandor nodded that he remembered. “That was Sansa Stark. No one at school knew where the Starks had moved to, or if they did, they were keeping their mouth shut, so I never expected to find her here of all places, dating you. And you took me instead of her… I really, _really_ need to apologize to her.”

“Sansa… and Joffrey?” Sandor asked. She had mentioned an ex-boyfriend, but not a lot of details. He vaguely remembered her reactions to hearing his name during football season, minor though they were, and the way she had covered her hair and half her face during the Clash Of Kings game for homecoming. _She was making sure Joffrey couldn't tell it was her, if he should happen to actually see her in the crowd. I thought she was just cold._ And while he knew she had only moved to Kingswood before the school year started, he had never asked where she had moved from, nor had she given the information on her own. _Not directly, anyway,_ he thought as he remembered the pendant she had given him was made by a guy in King’s Landing, Arya's ex-boyfriend. She never really talked about her life before moving to Kingswood, had changed the topic on the few occasions that he had brought it up. It hadn't seemed important to push, since she was here now. “Wait… Why do you really, _really_ need to apologize?”

“Ah, well, it's embarrassing, and I didn't want to, like, admit it earlier… The thing is, Joffrey started treating her like crap _because_ I moved to town. I mean, he wasn't like that great of a boyfriend in general from what I'm told, but he upped the ante in order to get my attention. You know how my dad is, how Viserys is, and he thought I was, like, like that, too. I didn't hear about it until later, but it seems like Joffrey had a habit of comparing the two of us, and telling her how much he preferred me. So…”

“So me taking you instead of her… shit. I had no idea.” He leaned back in his seat. “Fuck.” He looked up at his friends. “I… I need to go. Maybe lunch another time?”

“Yeah, man. Of course. If you need us to talk to her, just call us.” Drogo hugged him again and Dany kissed his good cheek.

He walked down the street, looking for the nearest bus stop, remembering that there was probably one in front of the park, and calling Sansa's phone number. “Please pick up…”

He faintly heard her ringtone off to the side. Turning, he followed the path into the park, and saw her staring at her phone as it rang. She was sitting on a bench, in front of the pond where all the ducks liked to swim, facing away from him. Her sketch book was in her lap, her hair pinned up, though a few locks on the back of her neck had escaped. He saw her take a deep breath, and expected her to ignore the call, but she answered at the last second. “Hi…”

“Hey...can we talk? In person?”

“I'm...I'm not at home right now. Can you wait for a bit? It won't take me long to get there. Or I can head over to your place...” She started playing with the wire of her sketch book.

“Or you could turn around.”

Her head whipped around so quickly, he half expected her to have whiplash. “How did you…?”

“Coincidence. I was having lunch with…” He didn't want to upset her, but he also didn't want to lie to her. “With Dany and Drogo.”

“Dany? As in Daenarys Targaryen? And Drogo… Drogo Khal? The guy on the football team?”

He sat down beside her, his arm on the back of the bench, almost touching her but not quite. She didn't move away and he silently cheered. “Yeah. They've been together since freshman year. She was thanking me for helping her out. And seems congratulations are in order. They're engaged to be married.” Sansa's mouth dropped open.

“They're so young though…” she was finally able to say.

“Well, if you love someone like they do, it's more surprising that they're not just eloping.”

“Oh...well, when you put it that way…” She looked down at her sketch. She had been drawing the ducks, one in particular, a rather odd looking duck that was missing a good chunk of feathers. Ugly fucker, but in Sansa's drawing, he looked almost cute.

“Sansa…” She tensed a bit. “Can we start over? I… I know I made a mess of things, but you know I care deeply about you, even if you don't believe me when I say love you. I just… I think it will take time to prove it to you, but until then… will you go out with me? Be my girlfriend and my best friend and everything in between?”

“You're not the only one who made mistakes, you know. But I have to ask... Why?” She looked up at him with curious eyes.

“Which part?”

“All of it? Why do you even bother with me? I know I'm a bit pretty, and we get along so well, but…I'm not like... there are _better_ girls you could dat--”

“Is this about what Joffrey did to you?” he asked. He was going to kill that little shitstain if he ever got a hold of him. The shock on her face reminded him that she couldn't have known that he knew. He tentatively took her hand and then gave it a squeeze when she didn't shake him off. “Dany told me. Didn't know she was telling me until later when I mentioned your name. She wants to make it up to you, by the way. Feels really guilty that Joffrey did that stuff to you because of her.”

Sansa's lower lip trembled ever so slightly and she didn't resist when he drew her into a hug, her sketch book falling to the ground. “Why didn't you tell me about all that?” he asked softly, rubbing her back as she cried into his shirt.

She hiccuped as she tried to speak. “I was ashamed. I thought… I thought if I didn't talk about it, it would… it would be like it… like it never happened. So stupid. San-stupid, that's what he called me… I tried so hard to be a _good_ girlfriend, but I didn't want to _do_ any of those things… not until I met you…” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “He didn't bully me, not at first, and even when he did, it wasn’t _that_ bad, and then it was, but still not as bad as... not until _that_ night. He got so drunk, got me drunk… kept telling me he wanted to hear me scream... Arya found us before he could… _force_ himself on me. His friend...they were just laughing and laughing... Arya and her boyfriend... when they found us… they beat the snot out of Joffrey and his friend Boros. Took me home, made me tell Mom and Dad… Dad got so angry, I thought he hated me, but he was angry at _Joff_ , at Joff’s dad… He called Mr. Baratheon and _demanded_ Joffrey be punished. He said it would be done, but we had a major assembly the next day. One of Joffrey's friends was in the AV club… he got in trouble for helping, but he claims he had no idea what was on the video. He played it… for the _entire_ school. Joffrey got suspended for a month, but his mom took him to Essos... _like it was a vacation._ Dad threatened to sue the school, Joffrey's parents… they didn't think he would, but he _did_. He's determined to make them pay, though he settled for an apology and a condemnation of Joffrey's actions from the school. He would have settled for the same from the Baratheons, but Mr. Baratheon couldn't stand up to his wife. Mom says she controls him with an iron fist on his dick.”

Sandor couldn't help smiling. It was a minor thing, but it was the first time he heard her say the word “dick” instead of “boy bits”.

“I'm so sorry that happened to you,” he said. She had relaxed, her body pressed against his side and her arms around his torso. His shirt was wet from her tears, but he'd throw himself into the pond if it made her feel better. _Fuck, I've missed her, missed this closeness._

“I am, too, but also… not.” He peered down at her. “Wouldn't have moved here if that hadn't happened. Wouldn't have met you if Eliza hadn't shoved me in that locker. Bad things happened, but then better things happened, so… I can't completely hate that the bad things happened, you know? As sad as they make me...”

“Yeah, I know.” He wouldn't have his scars if he hadn't jumped in to fight Gregor, but he might not have his sister either. He'd do the exact same thing all over again if he had to.

She sighed, more content than before. “I've missed you. And this… your hugs. Really missed that.” She pulled away to look him in the eye. “I want to start over, too. I don't know why you'd want to date me but--”

He silenced her with a kiss, and kept kissing her until she was dazed and breathless. “If I had known we were dating the first time around, you would _not_ doubt why. I'm the one who should be questioning your sanity for liking an idiot. I mean, how fucking dense am I?! We were fucking, for fuck’s sake! Going out on proper dates by all accounts. And _still_ I had no idea.” She giggled, and he smiled. “I am so sorry, Sansa. If I had known... I would have done so much differently.”

“Like what?”

He really had thought about it, what he would do if he was given a second chance. He started with the answer that would get a chuckle out of her. “More fucking. I was being moderate before.” She giggled again. “Lots more kissing. More hand holding. Spend more time alone with you, and not with our friends. PDAs. Soooooo many PDAs. Everyone will know that you're my girl and that I'm your guy, abso-fucking-lutely no doubts. More dates, fancy ones, too. Maybe double dates. More dancing together. Not just practice dancing, actual dancing. On a ballroom floor. With fancy clothing. Flowers. Flowers that can never compare to you, but I know you'd like them all the same.”

“I do like flowers,” she said softly.

“Can you forgive me for being an idiot?" he asked softly.

"If you can forgive me for avoiding you. I'm so sorry. I _shouldn't_ have run away from you...I should have yelled at you or maybe clobbered you. Just...not run away. I gave up without trying..."

"Easily forgiven," he said. "I should have chased after you, held you down and talked to you, but I let my fears and reservations stop me. I'll promise to make it up to you, every single day, for rest of our lives, if that's how long it takes.”

She gasped. “Sandor… Wha--”

“Yeah, I mean it like that. Not tomorrow or anything, but in a few years, will you marry me? Assuming I haven't driven you off by then.”

“Sandor.”

“You don't have to say yes right now either. I mean, going from kind of dating to not talking and then to engagement is a bit---”

She was the one who kissed him into silence this time. “Ask me again, after I've graduated. Until then, do your best to show you love me and I will do the same for you. I mean...I know you do, though I did have my doubts after that whole _practice dummy_ conversation...and it will be difficult what with you going off to college in the fall, but… I think we can make it. I think we can do the long distance relationship...”

“Lots more phone sex, too.” He chuckled as she smacked him. “And photos. And letters. Video chats, and setting aside whole days to spend together when I come back for vacations. Maybe you can come visit me at school? No matter where we are, when we meet up, the first day will of course be…” He looked at her expectantly.

“F-fucking?” she squeaked, covering her face with her hands.

“No, a day long date. Dirty mind.” She smacked him again, but he laughed, “But I can see about tending to your _needs_ as soon as the date is over.”

“Jerk,” she whispered, yet she snuggled into his embrace.

“Ah, speaking about fucking...and the possible consequences of it…” he said, feeling more nervous than he had expected. “I still have that test you bought last night.”

He would be lying if he said her possibly being pregnant with his kid was part of his motivation for asking her to marry him, but it wasn't his only reason. Not even a primary reason.

“Oh… about that…” she stammered. “Um… I'm not… I'm not pregnant. For sure.”

“You bought another test?”

“No…” She went bright red. “My period started…last night. I think...I think I might have been so stressed out by everything, that my body reacted by not… yeah… And then after we talked...got some of the things out in the open, I wasn’t stressed anymore.”

“Ah… so no make up sex today then.” She smacked him a third time. “What? I was looking forward to it. I suppose we could try shower sex if you're worried about staining the bed.” He leaned in close to whisper in her ear, “And if you were already pregnant, then I could have fucked you without a condom.” She squeaked again and buried her face in his chest. He had realized a while back that he had fucked…correction, _made love_ to her without a condom their second time together. It had struck him out of nowhere two months after the fact, and he knew that she had had her period since then, so he hadn't been worried about her being pregnant. He had been much more careful after that, especially on the few occasions when she had slept over and he had woken up to find her more than willing, but he had remembered how much better it had felt, and wished they could do it like that again. When he finally got the courage to mention it to her, she had admitted she had liked how it felt as well.

“I could...maybe start taking the pill?” she suggested, her voice muffled by his shirt.

“You really want to talk to your mom _and_ a doctor about this?” Not that he would hesitate if he had to be in her shoes, but she was a lot more shy than him.

“I… maybe? I don't know.”

“I'll leave that up to you. I'm fine with waiting until we're legally bound in marriage and ready to start a family.”

“I feel so _awkward_ talking about sex while seated on a bench at a _public_ _park_ ,” she said, looking around to make sure no one could hear them.

“Well, I guess we could be _having_ sex on a park bench, but I'd rather not get arrested for public indecency, if you don't mind.” She smacked him a fourth time and he laughed long and hard. “I'm glad you're feeling better,” he whispered in her ear. “And I'm sorry I'm such an idiot and couldn't see what was happening in front of my eyes.”

“I'm sorry, too, for not talking about it, for not telling you how I felt.” She looked up at him. “I'm sorry for not… for not telling you about Joffrey.”

“It's ok. You weren't ready to. Can’t get mad at you for that. There's some other stuff I have yet to tell you, and I will. Later. Not right now, when I finally have you back in my arms and we got this good mood going.”

“Ok... So now what?” she asked. “I know we said starting over, but I don’t want to start at the _beginning._ I mean… I missed you like crazy. Going slow like when we first met is not really what I want at the moment.”

“Maybe we could treat is as more like a reboot, or something along those lines,” he suggested.

She bit her lower lip. “Like a what if?”

“A what if?”

She nodded. “Yeah, like _what if_ you knew the entire time that we were dating? Or _what if_ we forgive each other and we pick up where we left off, but now you know.”

“And what do I know now, exactly?”

She glared at him. “You _better_ know.”

He laughed. “I do. I just want to hear you say again. And again. And again and again.”

She sighed, but smiled. “You should know _now,_ I'm in love with you. And you're my boyfriend. I don't want to date Harrold. I don't even _like_ him. And I _don't_ want to date anyone else either.”

“Say the first part again.”

She rolled her eyes, still smiling. “I _love_ you, dummy.”

He grinned and hugged her tightly. “Love you, too, little bird,” he whispered in her ear.

She pushed away to look him in the eyes. "But know this. If you ever, _EVER,_ take someone  _else_ out on a date again, I will slap you back to your senses."

He laughed. "If I ever do that, I will serve myself up to my mother, my sisters, your siblings, _and_  your parents."

She giggled. "Seems a bit extreme."

"I would not survive. Sounds fair to me. And if you ever run away from me again, I will chase you, I will catch you, and I will not let you go. Ever."

"Deal," she said, kissing him softly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The results and epilogue will be posted tomorrow!
> 
> Name the song referenced in the chapter (not the chapter title) for an extra three points, be as specific as possible. It's hidden in there.  
> Please post Bonus Trivia Answers in a separate comment (or do not alter your comment once you post your answer) so that the time stamps do not get confuddled. I feel like this is a hard one, so depending on how long it takes to get the correct answer, I may make it worth more points.


	27. Epilogue, Five years later

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess yesterday's bonus was a bit too hard... :( I'm so sorry everyone. The answer is: [When I Was Your Man](https://youtu.be/ekzHIouo8Q4), by Bruno Mars. 
> 
> **The paragraph in question:**  
>  He really had thought about it, what he would do if he was given a second chance. He started with the answer that would get a chuckle out of her. “More fucking. I was being moderate before.” She giggled again. “Lots more kissing. **More hand holding. Spend more time alone with you,** and not with our friends. PDAs. Soooooo many PDAs. Everyone will know that you're my girl and that I'm your guy, abso-fucking-lutely no doubts. More dates, fancy ones, too. Maybe double dates. **More dancing together.** Not just practice dancing, actual dancing. On a ballroom floor. With fancy clothing. **Flowers. Flowers that can never compare to you,** but I know you'd like them all the same.”
> 
> **The lyrics:**  
>  Mm, too young, too dumb to realize  
> That I should have bought you flowers  
> And held your hand  
> Should have gave you all my hours  
> When I had the chance  
> Take you to every party 'cause all you wanted to do was dance

The bell above the door jingled, causing Sansa to look up from her machine.  She was hidden from view, except from one person.

“What do _you_ want?” Eliza asked rudely. She worked the front desk and kept the business running smoothly, while Sansa handled the creative side.

“Fuck off. Came to pick up Sansa,” Sandor told his sister. _Every time he comes in, it’s the same thing,_ Sansa thought with a giggle. Sandor had told her he wasn’t sure if she was doing it to be ornery or sisterly. Alayna did the same thing when it came to their sister-in-law.

“She’s not--”

“Eliza!” Sansa shouted from her hiding place.

Eliza rolled her eyes at him. “Ugh, _fine._ She’s in the back.” She shouted back to her, “I can lock up if you want!”

Sansa came into the front and handed Eliza a short list. “I’d appreciate that. Is Jon picking you up?"

"No, Ygritte is. Says Jon has been monopolizing my time lately, so she wants to take me out on a date, just the two of us." She shrugged, but Sansa could see the secret smile of hers.

"Tell her I say hi. Oh, would you please give these customers a call? Their orders are ready.”

“Will do, boss!”

Sansa hugged her friend, then Sandor kissed her, took her hand and led her out to the car. Once they were on their way home, he said, “Sorry I was running late. Good day?”

“Very good. Got a lot of work done, new designs, mending, construction, that whole lot. New customer today. You'll never guess who, so I'm just going to tell you. Cersei Baratheon. She was shocked to see me, despite the name of place. That was an interesting twist. I decided to let Eliza charge her twenty percent more than normal. I told Jaime about it, and he said it should have been forty percent, but he’s still pissed for her drunken antics at his and Brie’s wedding. You?”

**********

The Sanctuary of Stark was far behind them, their home miles to go, but their destination was only minutes away. “Eh... My day was... Very productive. Boss says I’m a shoe in for the promotion. If my design passes inspection, which it will, we’ll build a small-scale model. If _that_ works, then you could be looking at a new eco-friendly power source for the town. Could take a few years to implement, tweaks to the design, of course, but yeah… I’m excited.”

He looked down at the simple gold band on Sansa’s finger. He and Sansa had worked hard to keep their relationship strong over the long distance from Kingswood to Oldtown. Sansa visited him once a month, every month, while he was at Oldtown University, and renewed his motivation to work so damn hard. Not that he really _needed_ to be reminded, but he definitely didn't mind. His roommates only complained that they were too loud, but settled down after Sansa bribed them with home cooking. None of the four men who lived in the shared housing could cook anything more complicated than breakfast or ramen and he had had to punch them all each time when they begged Sansa to marry them and cook for them. They even went as far as offering to be in her harem, which annoyed Sandor beyond belief. Sansa, of course, had just laughed and told them that Sandor was more than enough harem for her.

Part of his effort was to not only graduate at the top of his class, but also to graduate early. The five year program had been done in three years, and a job secured with the city government. It paid well, had job security, and gave him the confidence to set a date for their wedding, which Sansa insisted be on the anniversary of the day he rescued her from the locker. His little bird was sentimental like that. The wedding had been small, since Sansa wanted to put money into her business instead of having a big wedding. It had consisted of a dress she made herself and a date at the courthouse with their families as witnesses. Their mothers had thrown a surprise dinner for them, inviting all their friends and they ended up having a big party anyway.

Before all of that had happened, however, Eliza had taken Sandor’s place as Sansa’s tutor for her final year at Kingswood High. After Sandor, Sansa considered Eliza to be her best friend, and the two had opened up The Sanctuary of Stark in a tiny storefront with their combined assets and a small business loan from the Iron Bank. It had taken a year and a half, but the shop had flourished by the time Sandor graduated and they were well on their way to paying back the loan.

“Do you ever regret not going to college?” he asked her.

She laughed. “I did go! For a semester, and only for those three business classes, but it counts. I may not have graduated with a degree, but I learned what I needed to, and I don’t regret that.”

“Yeah, but I mean, do you regret not going and getting a degree? Or going to a design school and… actually, I don’t know what you get from a design school. Is it also a degree? Is it a certification?” He had never really looked into it, since it wasn’t his field.

“Not really. I mean, I’ve known the basics since I was six. I did look into it, when I was getting ready to graduate high school, but I ultimately decided it wasn’t for me.”

“You never told me that.”

She shrugged. “It didn’t seem important. Anyway, why are you asking?”

“My boss wants me to try for a master’s degree in mechanical engineering. I didn’t want to even think about it if you wanted to try going back to school,” he said sheepishly.

She laughed again. “Oh, stud, that’s sweet of you, but I am done with school. D-O-N-E, _done._ Oh, but if you get a masters, will you need to move to Oldtown again?” She sounded worried.

“Thinking of doing it online this time. The University of Dorne has an excellent program, and my boss’s elder brother works as a dean for the Liberal Arts college there. He’s going to ask him to get me an interview with the dean of Engineering and Computer Science. Mr. Martell said he’d pay for my plane ticket over there, and for a short stay. He also said if I want to pay for a ticket for my lovely wife, I was more than welcome to take her along. I told him I’d have to talk to you first, but since you’ve been wanting to go for a while now…”

She squealed and threw her arms around him, nearly causing him to swerve into oncoming traffic. “Oh gods… I’m so sorry, I just got so excited…”

He laughed. “It’s fine, it’s fine, just… ah, maybe save the enthusiasm until I’ve stopped the car? We’re almost there.”

“Where are we? This isn’t anywhere near home.” She peered out the window.

“A surprise. Close your eyes.” She huffed, but did as he asked. He turned the corner and coasted to a stop in front of an empty store. It was a new plaza, still in the process of being built, and none of the spaces had been rented yet. Well, one had. “Ok, open them.”

He watched her as she did, then as her eyes went wide and she covered her mouth in surprise. “Oh my… Is that…?”

In the window of the store was a sign, _Coming Soon, The Sanctuary of Stark, Boutique and Tailoring._

“Yep, signed the papers today. As soon as the building is complete, you can start moving your shop in here. It has a lot more space than your current location, and you can add more changing rooms, as well as more off the rack items-- Oof!” She had thrown herself at him, hugging and kissing him.

“How did you get this place? I’ve been trying to get a hold of the owner for months now!” she exclaimed.

“Easy. We own it.” He laughed as her jaw dropped. “My dad’s mother, she lives in Essos, but she owns property here. I thought she was dead, since no one ever talks about her, but she heard we married, and she was furious with Dad for not telling her, or keeping her in the loop. She decided she wanted to give us something grand for our first anniversary even if it was two months ago. She'll be coming into town next month to visit, by the way. We already own a house, but when she found out about your business, she decided on commercial property, and built it up into something you can use. Her lawyer brought the papers over to me today, and now this little plaza is all ours. You can continue your business here, and the other renters should be able to cover the costs of taxes and whatnot. Alayna already wants to be property manager, so I know she’ll run a tight ship. What do you think?”

“Oh my gods… this is just… It’s so…” He loved it when she was rendered speechless. He gave her a little squeeze.

“I’m glad you like it.” He looked up at the new store front. Nearly six years ago, he had never dreamed he would be telling his wife she was going to have a brand new place to sell her clothing. He had never dreamed that he would have a wife as wonderful as her. He had never dreamed that he would work so hard just to see her smile and that that made all the work worthwhile. He had never dreamed that running late to school and rescuing some random kid from his half-sister’s bullying would ever lead him down a road like this, but he was grateful. All the good times would never have been if it hadn’t been for the bad, and he would be so lost without his best friend at his side. He didn’t know what would come next, but he knew that as long as they had each other, it would turn out alright in the end. “Ah, just don’t tell your brothers about this. They’ll never let me hear the end of it.”

She giggled, “Pins and spiders, stud. Pins and spiders.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO!!!!  
> Third place is.... Mademoiselle_k!!!  
> You get to pick: Modern or Canon?
> 
> Second place is....Lalelilolu!!  
> You get to pick the rating AND genre. :D  
> General Audiences, Teen - Fluff, Fairy Tale  
> Mature, Explicit - Mystery, Horror  
> Any rating - Fantasy, Mythology, Sci-Fi  
> (These are just suggestions, if you have another genre in mind, please feel free to ask for it instead.)
> 
> And first place is.....AzraelGFG  
> You get to pick the prompt! Please wait to see what your fellow winners pick before choosing a prompt.
> 
> And runners up are....Zip001, Schave7728, and Sassyeggs!  
> Everyone listed above gets a cameo in the story! Please either comment here or send me a message (or an ask) on tumblr and let me know a brief physical description, the name you would like to go by, and if you want to be paired with anyone (other than Sandor or Sansa.)


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